The BBC: Myth of a Public Service Hardcover – November 15, 2016

“The BBC: Myth of a Public Service” by Tom Mills offers a fascinating critique of the BBC as an instrument of elite power. Professor Mills is a lecturer who researched the BBC as part of his PhD dissertation. Anyone interested in media studies will gain invaluable insights from reading this exceptionally well-researched, well-written and persuasive book.Professor Mills discusses the early history of the BBC, including its celebration of the General Strike’s defeat in 1926, to demonstrate that it has represented powerful interests from the start. The BBC is a top-down, hierarchical organization whose management is recruited from the upper class and is dependent upon government approval for funding. In fact, professor Mills talks about the secret state project to vet BBC journalists with supposed radical ideologies persisted from the 1930s until its exposure in 1985. Even today, the author contends that MI6 exercises enormous influence over the BBC’s nationalistic reporting on the War on Terror.Professor Mills argues that the BBC is consistently pro-U.K. in its wartime reporting. Of course, the BBC was unabashedly propagandist during World War II (and few would disagree with this position), but the pattern of pro-government reporting persisted through more ambiguous events such as the Suez Crisis, the anti-nuclear movement, the Falklands War, and so on. Crucially, Professor Mills believes the BBC did not adequately critique the buildup to the Iraq War, succumbing far too easily to pressure from the influential hawk, Alistair Campbell.The charges of Leftist bias at the BBC, professor Mills says, have merely been part of a very successful Conservative agenda to assert corporate power in the U.K. Cutting through the hype, professor Mills cites studies proving that the BBC interviews Conservatives in the public and private spheres far more often than Left-leaning activists and representatives from Labour. Far from challenging the status quo, the revolving door between the BBC and Westminster has emphatically positioned the BBC at the center of U.K. power.Professor Mills talks about the BBC’s institutional transformation when Alisdair Milne was sacked by Thatcherite ideologues in 1987. Milne's successor, John Birt imposed an authoritarian editorial regime that quashed creativity in favor of predictable, neoliberal spin. We learn how the BBC has since become a post-ideological broadcaster of purportedly politically-neutral, numbers-driven economics reporting. An astounding 11 hours of original business programming per day is produced by the BBC to be consumed by an increasingly narrow audience of the privileged few and the fearful, precarious many.As it is arguably the English-speaking world’s most important news media organization, what happens at the BBC matters. Professor Mills’ call to put the BBC under public control makes perfect sense. Technology has made it possible to enlarge the scope of reporting and allow more stories to be heard. The author is hopeful that the British people can find the political will to transform the BBC to better serve democracy, and not just the interests of the upper class.I highly recommend this excellent book to everyone.

This book examines the change (according to the author) of the BBC from an impartial disseminator of news to become a voice of right-wing conservatives. Mills recalls stories ranging from the activities and influence of Mary Whitehouse, whose main grouse might have appeared to be sexual immorality, but, in reality, she was much more political than prudish. Mills is of the view that Whitehouse influenced right-wing politicians to act against the BBC. The attack on the BBC as a right-wing sycophantic institution is all the more paradoxical because many attacked it as being too liberal. But Mills maintain that in recent times, especially, the BBC had given Jeremy Corbyn a great deal more negative reporting than it had of the conservative politicians. This book outlines the history of the BBC in order to trace its transformation from a neutral body into a right-wing one. The reader may not have enough to form an objective assessment of this book without reading Patrick Barwise and Peter York’s book, ‘The War Against the BBC’ which claims that right-wing conservatives are doing their utmost best to destroy the BBC as an impartial institution that it was, and still is. What the reader may get out of this is that the BBC founded in 1922, had been most respected not only in the United Kingdom but also throughout the Commonwealth. Barwise and York sets out in detail the grand venture of the BBC from then to now, but they also underline what conservative media (such as the Daily Mail) and their owners work to undermine the BBC. They fear for the life of the BBC especially after Covid-19 and the depth of funding cuts.This is a twin review of the two books mentioned above. Both are well-written and compelling. Whatever the motives, it does appear that the British government seems content to let the BBC sink – and it might if it cannot fund itself.

Anyone who has spared the matter more than two minutes thought already has at least a gut feeling that the BBC is not independent. In that sense Tom Mills isn’t telling us some of us anything new. More importantly he’s telling us how and why. During my working life as a freelance I myself profited from Producer Choice but at the same time was able to witness how Birt’s BBC unfolded and the strange paradoxes it produced through the corporatist and stiflingly bureaucratic ethos it adopted. Internal marketing had to be the strangest given what we all used to think the BBC was or should be in terms of a coordinated fountain of cultural output. In his conclusion Mills articulates the problem very usefully for those who wish to counter arguments from those who would defend the BBC as if it were their religion. Sadly Mills nowhere mentions the money the BBC accepted from the EU, a political organisation with its own vested interests, fundamentally under the control of foreign powers, and thus directly contravened its charter. However much we admire its dramas it’s impossible to believe those funds didn’t ever slant news and current affairs. On that fact alone we are all entitled to our licence fee back.

This book examines the change (according to the author) of the BBC from an impartial disseminator of news to become a voice of right-wing conservatives. Mills recalls stories ranging from the activities and influence of Mary Whitehouse, whose main grouse might have appeared to be sexual immorality, but, in reality, she was much more political than prudish. Mills is of the view that Whitehouse influenced right-wing politicians to act against the BBC. The attack on the BBC as a right-wing sycophantic institution is all the more paradoxical because many attacked it as being too liberal. But Mills maintain that in recent times, especially, the BBC had given Jeremy Corbyn a great deal more negative reporting than it had of the conservative politicians. This book outlines the history of the BBC in order to trace its transformation from a neutral body into a right-wing one. The reader may not have enough to form an objective assessment of this book without reading Patrick Barwise and Peter York’s book, ‘The War Against the BBC’ which claims that right-wing conservatives are doing their utmost best to destroy the BBC as an impartial institution that it was, and still is. What the reader may get out of this is that the BBC founded in 1922, had been most respected not only in the United Kingdom but also throughout the Commonwealth. Barwise and York sets out in detail the grand venture of the BBC from then to now, but they also underline what conservative media (such as the Daily Mail) and their owners work to undermine the BBC. They fear for the life of the BBC especially after Covid-19 and the depth of funding cuts.This is a twin review of the two books mentioned above. Both are well-written and compelling. Whatever the motives, it does appear that the British government seems content to let the BBC sink – and it might if it cannot fund itself.

Do not expect an analysis of political bias on Newsnight or Breakfast's coverage of Prime Minister's Questions. This book is aimed at larger issues of 'systemic bias', rather than arguing the toss over whether Mrs May or Mr Corbyn got longer air-time.The author's premise is that from its very outset the BBC has been, 'neither independent nor impartial' and he puts forward a compelling case. Mr Mills argues that to look for specific examples of bias is in fact misleading and detracts from the bigger picture. Ironically, one of the few specific examples used by Mr Mills is contentious. His claim that Blair acted in 'opposition to majority opinion' leading up to the Iraq War is factually incorrect based on opinion polls at the time.His 'bigger picture' argument is that the focus should be on the extent of systemic collusion or the 'cohesion' of ideas and objectives between the BBC and the Government/Establishment.Some of this 'cohesion' is obvious such as the disproportionate number of Public School employees; the elites know elites and how to maintain the status quo. Likewise the 'control' over the BBC has been via the two blunt instruments of the licence fee and power to appoint Governors/Trust members. Rather more surprising was the extent of political vetting of BBC staff between 1935-1985. This was done with the active collusion of senior BBC management, of whom a surprisingly large number seem to have had links to the security service.The last 25 years has seen the near collapse of the trade union voice as 'labour and business' reporting has become 'business and economics'. The book became less cogent when entering the 'neoliberalism' debate as part of the Right's backlash over the 1960's counter-culture . This led into the 'internal market' changes of John Birt.

After reading this book I will never listen to or watch BBC news and programming wih the same enthusiasm or belief.The BBC is a fully fledged arm of the ruling establishment .Like listening to "Today" in the time of Thatcher & Tebbit you know now why it always seems that the Labour politicians inevitably get a ragging from the interviewers while Tory politicians seem always to be allowed to sail through an interview with nothing awkward questioned but maybe a little gentle chidding. Absolutely a must read if you want a free press and broadcasting & not just to pay to read or view someone's propaganda.

Tom Mills has written an excellent and accessible, yet academic, account and history of the BBC that convincingly argues that it is a part of the establishment and reflects the views, prejudices and interests as well as the background of much of the key staff, with that establishment.