Re: [Swprograms] Does the BBC World Service fail Britain?

["Sandy Finlayson" <sfinlayson@xxxxxxx>]

When I purchased my first short wave radio in the mid 1970's I did so
precisely because I wanted to hear what was going on in the UK.  

At that point the vast majority of International Broadcasters were
targeting their audiences with information on their countries so that
people living abroad could get a sense of the country and I suspect they
also were targeting expats who wanted news of home.

As we all know the money crunchers at the BEEB have decided that this is
not what the world needs and in fairness given ease of access to Radio 4
via the internet it isn't too hard to fill in the gap.  However, I do
miss the old BBCWS and have happy memories of listening to it.

SF

 
--------------------------------------------------------
Mr. Sandy Finlayson
Director of Library Services &
Professor of Theological Bibliography
Westminster Theological Seminary 
Philadelphia, PA
 
 
'Nothing makes a man more reverent than a library'
Sir Winston Churchill
-----Original Message-----
From: swprograms-bounces@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
[mailto:swprograms-bounces@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Richard Cuff
Sent: Tuesday, August 05, 2008 9:09 AM
To: mike.barraclough@xxxxxxxxx; Shortwave programming discussion
Subject: Re: [Swprograms] Does the BBC World Service fail Britain?

The reason I flagged the letter is that it focused specifically on the
lack of content *about* Britain on the World Service, and that
resonated with me.

If one looks to the World Service of the 1980s, there was a
thrice-weekly program called "Network UK" that focused on events in
Britain and British culture.  It was somewhat similar to today's
"Outlook" but didn't have the emphasis on the arts that Outlook often
has.

There was also a program called "News About Britain" that ran 15
minutes a couple times per day that enabled the listener to hear
domestic news with enough background to inform a global audience.

In 2008, the World Service continues to deemphasize the UK in its
programming, and I believe that's a loss to those of us who listen to
shortwave radio -- er, make that international broadcasters -- in
order to learn about other countries and their perspectives.

Regarding expats, they certainly were an historical target audience of
the World Service; the advertisements in the World Service
publications "On Air" and, before that, "London Calling" touted
offshore investment schemes and health insurance programs that
specifically appealed to expats living overseas.

Richard Cuff / Allentown, PA  USA

On Tue, Aug 5, 2008 at 2:30 AM, Mike Barraclough
<softbulletin1@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> Why has this letter from one individual reader of the right wing press
any particular significance?
>
> It's in response to this:
>
> Sir - The BBC has withdrawn the World Service from most European
countries, including France, where many thousands of Britons live.
>
> How does the BBC reconcile making an overseas service more readily
available to Britons who are not overseas, as it has done, while
withdrawing it from Britons who really are overseas?
>
> Philip Perkins, Ramsbury, Wiltshire
>
> The BBC World Service never was a service for ex-patriates who don't
pay for it. And of course it hasn't withdrawn it, it's available on
several platforms. Mr. Perkins also ignores the fact that BBC World
Service does broadcast in languages other than English.
>

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