The BBC: The Myth of a Public Service

Resumen del libro

The BBC: the mouth piece of the Establishment

The BBC is one of the most important institutions in Britain. And it is also one of the most misunderstood. Since its founding, the BBC has been the servant of the establishment. Despite its pleas of impartiality and fairness, and the constant accusations of favouring the liberal point of view, it has always sided with the elites. This was true in 1926 when it stood against the workers during the General Strike, and it has continued to mute the voices of those who spoke against the status quo: miners in 1984, anti-war protesters in 2003, those who offer alternatives to austerity economics since 2008. The organisation has continuously failed to uphold principles of integrity and accuracy and in recent years been mired in scandals that has caused serious damage to its reputation.

In the year when charter renewals forces all parties to question what the BBC is for, media expert Tom Mills exposes an unfulfilled promise. He shows that the BBC have always been close to those in power, while also professing objectivity. Yet, from the outset much of its activity has been scrutinised by the secret services at the invitation of those in charge. Since the 1990s, the introduction of the market place into the institution makes any hope of a public service broadcaster impossible. From the Today program to Newsnight, Nick Robinson to Robert Peston, Mills shows why we are only getting the news that the establishment wat you to hear