to think BBC should be privatised - pronto

[TRex4]

First off, can I say I have mixed feelings about posting this. I hate political propaganda on MN, I really do. But I really also dislike BBC PC propaganda (for which I'm paying!!), and No. 2 the fact that most of their programmes are utter shite, from Antiques Roadshow to, well, just about everything else. There was a sensitive-ish BBC programme on Germaine Greer about 6 months ago but I struggle to think of anything else I've watched thats raised the intellectual bar above a pea-shoot.

You really do need to go to other channels for controversy, intellectual stimulation and enjoyment. Apart from their Comedy Department of course - brilliant (This Country and People Do Nothing are the exceptions). But really, the rest is a load of PC-Rest-Home crap. If I see another PubliC service Announcement on Eastenders or their so-called "news" on BBC also known as propaganda, I think I'll scream.

Really, they should put it out of its misery and kill it off and save us all £150 a year? I used to be neutral, but have really grown to dislike Auntie's "we know best" (they don't) over the last few years.

You can pry Cbeebies from my cold dead hands! But seriously you can't knock its representation of kids with disabilities and other minorities/cultures, not to mention it doesn't advertise crap every 10 minutes.

YABU. Love the beeb. Just spent the night catching up with Glastonbury coverage, its awesome.

I also think it should only cover BBC it really is ridiculous it covers the other channels who advertise.

It doesn’t affect me though as I cancelled mine years ago as I don’t watch any live tv at all, I watch itv player and all4 catch-up for soaps when I feel like it but pay for Netflix and now tv, far better stuff on there and a lot of the bbc shows are gradually ending up on Netflix anyway

None of this has even mentioned the BBC's radio output, also funded by the licence fee (but freely and legally available without paying it!), which is peerless.

I don’t listen to the radio either, I use my phone for music

YABU, and very much so.

@Cerseil
BBC doesn't just broadcast music.

Its the 21st century, if you want to watch the BBC you should be able to subscribe to it, if you dont.... blue planet. Is that really the only reason many posters have to force the entire country to pay £150?

I dont watch BBC, why am I forced to pay for it?

Its the 21st century, if you want to watch the BBC you should be able to subscribe to it

Yep. Let's do the same for parks, education, the NHS and the police.

The BBC only works because everyone pays in. It's a collective good. Personally I think it's worth it, but even if you don't the £135 a year that goes to the BBC from each licence is hardly a major part of the tax we all pay.

parks, education, the NHS and the police
The BBC only works because everyone pays in. It's a collective good

I agree that parks, education the NHS and the police, are a collective good.
How is forcing people to pay Gary Lineker nearly 2 million pounds a year in the collective good?

People piss and moan at £150/year for a license fee, then go out and spend £70/month on Sky and Netflix. My eyes roll

Difference being the amount I pay Sky is based on the channels I watch. I don't see why i should pay the BBC when i don't watch their channel or listen to their radio stations.

How is forcing people to pay Gary Lineker nearly 2 million pounds a year in the collective good?

A cup of coffee is an individual good. It can be paid for by one person and directly benefits them. Most people can't afford to buy a Gary Lineker but once the capital costs of a Gary Lineker have been met everyone can enjoy the benefits with very little marginal cost.

The BBC education programmes are great- things like Live Lessons - range of topics taught in combination with top experts and teachers in interesting ways. No one else does anything like this and would do anything like this. It’s not just about what goes out on TV.

Unpopular oppion, but I believe that although YABU about wanting the BBC’s to go private, although I personally believe it will, (Its scary the amount of my productions come true) YANBU about believing that the beeb has become a PC propaganda Service. Mind you I think that ALL of British TV, needs a major shakeup. On one side, we have the bbc and there Constantly gritty fairly depressing dramas that must have every minority in , yet on ITV we are telling young teenagers that it’s okay to cheat on your boyfriend and have casual sex providing you are pretty. Sorry but American and Australian TV is so much better than British TV.

this post is brought to you by pliclotine. Ask your doctor for it by name. May have side effects

Australian tv is absolute shite. Ad break after the simpsons theme song then 4 more ad breaks during the show. do you need a loan? Call us now for a 60000% apr loan The only oz tv anyone knows is home and away and neighbours. have you been injured at work?

I really dont want fox news and reality tv shows only buy this make up so you can look like this 18 year old model. This model has been graphically altered.

araiwa - haha like what u did there.

Hands off the BBC!
Yes they do put out a load of rubbish. The news can be biased. But also some gems. And R4 (apart from some of the cringe-making unfunny sitcoms and dull 15 minute books) is worth the licence fee alone. Not to mention CBeebies / CBBC
Top class recent dramas include Don't Forget the Driver, Fleabag, Back to Life, Gentleman Jack.... others will have different favourites.
And best of all - NO ADS (just those really annoying frequent trailers)
All for £10 a month

A lot of people like rubbish BBC gets accused of being too high brow, except when they get accused of being "Out of touch" with mainstream & most of the license fee payers. With huge amount they produce, of course not everyone will like everything they output.

I think the BBC is problematic.

They do put out some very good dramas and a bit of decent comedy and Radio 4 has some interesting programming

But it’s the attitude expressed by a PP - “it’s a collective good” that is the problem. I don’t think the BBC is a malign organisation in any way - in fact I’m sure that it’s full to brimming with worthy social liberals who strongly believe that they’re doing society a huge favour by constantly steering us in the “right” direction - towards more diversity, more “equality”, more liberalism. But that very attitude is the problem. Why do they get to dictate what’s good for the rest of us?

The propaganda issue is interesting. So to take the BBC news as an example - in my opinion it is accurate, but at the same time unfair. So they present “true” facts, but they omit other facts that may present a more balanced picture. That’s a bias, and deeply problematic.

I just wish they would be less obsessed with window-dressing (making sure they have the correct number of “diverse” presenters to parade in front of us) and more genuinely interested in diversity of thought,
Intellectual flexibility and presentation of a range of genuinely different ideas. And before anyone starts shouting about the fact that Nigel Farage gets too much airtime, that’s NOT what I’m talking about. The BBC probably thinks it’s being balanced by offering us NF on a semi-regular basis, but true balance would be programming across
The board (in comedy, drama, documentaries and so on) that offer a really diverse range of social perspectives. Where, for example, are the Brexit-supporting comedians?

With huge amount they produce, of course not everyone will like everything they output.

But the problem is that they produce a huge amount of stuff that basically has the same socially liberal perspective: feminism good, gay marriage good, trans agenda good, diversity good, climate change bad, Brexit bad. So virtually all of their programming promotes this viewpoint in some way shape or form. If you employ a lot of people who share a common social viewpoint, who are responsible for commissioning and deciding on entertainment for the masses, you’re going to get the same underlying message across all your programming. That is kind of insidious, when you think about it.

I don’t even think it’s conscious on their part. I just think they’re recruiting the same kind of people - people who share these viewpoints - and so we go on and on with the same type of programming (although the message takes a huge number of different forms, agreed).

How many social conservatives work at the BBC? Many? Any? I doubt it. And their programming reflects this.

YABVVVU

"where are the brexit supoorting comedians?"

Running to lead the tory party.

What the post complaining about the bbc running positive stories about gay marriage, feminism etc us really complaining about is the fact that they dont represent ridiculously antiquated viewpoint as mainstream. They do however offer balance.

Farage is not on semi regularly, he holds the 2nd highest number of appearances after Ken Clark, who has been an MP since 1970! Farage has one fewer appearance!

Tell me where are the pro brexit, antinfeminism gat marriage etc types of c4 ? ITV? Sky?

What you really want is fox newa

There is at least one rt-wing comedian I hear frequently on Beeb who is Brexit supporter. And several comedians who don't seem to touch Brexit except (like Sandi Toksvig) to say that "What a mess, blimey!"

I don't watch TV so can't comment well on those presenters,that said, Andrew Neil is old establishment Tory so probably not a leftie. Portillo has presented TV & radio programmes.

but radio... John Humphrys, Nick Robinson, Matthew Parris, Stephen Nolan: all basically have been regular presenters & quite rt-wing. Peter Allen said on air that he was member of Tory party. Edwina Currie is merely a very regular guest, I suppose. Did Freddy Forsythe die, coz he was super frequent on Today for a while. Tim Martin gets interviewed a lot. Jeremy Vine is just provocative maybe, he seems quite rt-wing to me, though, & brexit supporting. Nigel Lawson loves to promote on the Beeb his climate-skepticism. Norman Lamont's voice I've heard a lot, promoting Brexit.

Jeremy Clarkson was a mainstay BBC presenter for yrs, while writing his DMail columns. Is someone calling JC left-wing?

By % of airtime, rt-wingers increasingly dominated BBC news coverage output in period 2007-2014.

Geoff Norcott.

Nah