BBC har tidligere vært preget av en massiv venstreliberal tendens, sier BBCs egen sjef, Mark Thompson. Men han påstår at alt nå er så mye bedre. Det er blitt høyere under taket.
En intern rapport fra to år tilbake konkluderte med at BBC hadde en “liberal bias”, dvs. man så verden gjennom liberale eller venstreorienterte briller. Det gjorde at BBC unngikk visse temaer som innvandring og euroskepsis, het det.
The BBC has long been accused of being institutionally biased towards the Left, and an internal report from 2007 said it had to make greater efforts to avoid liberal bias.
That report criticised the BBC for coming late to several important stories including euroscepticism and immigration, which it described as ‘off limits in terms of a liberal-minded comfort zone’.
Speaking of the time when he joined the BBC, Mr Thompson told the magazine: ‘In the BBC I joined 30 years ago [as a production trainee, in 1979] there was, in much of current affairs, in terms of people’s personal politics, which were quite vocal, a massive bias to the Left.
‘The organisation did struggle then with impartiality. And journalistically, staff were quite mystified by the early years of Thatcher.
‘Now it is a completely different generation.
‘There is much less overt tribalism among the young journalists who work for the BBC.’
Thompson sa BBC har verdiaspekt ved virksomheten, og det er også engasjement som får mange til å søke seg til BBC. Men kan det være engasjement på feil premisser? Hvis alle er engasjert på samme premisser, så oppstår det lett feil.
Thompson er selv katolikk og det gjør det lettere å forstå det idealistiske aspekt, sier han.
‘People’s sense of what’s right and wrong, and their sense of justice, are incredible parts of what motivates people to join.
‘I’m part of that. For me, that’s connected with my religious faith but the key thing is: you don’t have to be Catholic.’
Mr Thompson described relations between the BBC and the recently ousted Labour government in its last few years as ‘quite tetchy’.
But he said he was optimistic about a good settlement in forthcoming licence fee discussions with the Coalition.
He denied the organisation was one of ‘glorious freeloading’ but conceded: ‘We had our moments in the past’.
The interview came after Mr Thompson gave the prestigious MacTaggart Lecture at the Edinburgh Television Festival last month where he said millionaire stars face the axe or having their salaries slashed.
Yesterday it also emerged the BBC is facing the threat of strikes after thousands of journalists, technicians and other staff voted massively in favour of industrial action in a row over pensions.
Når kommer det en kommisjon som gransker NRKs tendensiøsitet?
Yes, BBC was biased: Director General Mark Thompson admits a ‘massive’ lean to Left