The Media Club · 18 February 2022 · 41 min
The Price of BBC Cuts & Tortoise Turning 3
- BBC We Are England Problems
- Privacy vs Public Interest
- Streaming Wars
- Tortoise Slow News
- NDA Use in Media
- BBC Regional Journalism
- Media Consolidation
- Membership Models
In this episode of The Media Club, host Matt Deegan is joined by TV indie chief Cat Lewis (Nine Lives Media) and The Guardian's media editor Jim Waterson to discuss the BBC's We Are England regional strand problems, the ZXC vs Bloomberg Supreme Court ruling on privacy, the rebranding of ViacomCBS to Paramount and the launch of Paramount Plus, and the use of NDAs at Channel 4 News. The feature interview is with James Harding, co-founder of Tortoise, who discusses the slow news startup's recent £10m fundraise, its shift towards audio, and its membership model. The episode also includes the media quiz 'Old Dogs or New Tricks'.
Key takeaways
- The BBC pulled two episodes of its new regional strand We Are England due to compliance issues, raising questions about resources and oversight.
- The Supreme Court ruled in ZXC vs Bloomberg that privacy trumps publication in cases of uncharged criminal investigations, potentially making it harder for media to report on such matters.
- ViacomCBS is rebranding as Paramount, and Paramount Plus is launching in the UK, but panellists questioned its distinctiveness and consumer appeal.
- Tortoise co-founder James Harding discussed the slow news startup's £10m fundraise, its shift towards audio, and its membership model of over 50,000 paid members.
- Channel 4 News faces questions over its use of NDAs, with panellists noting the chilling effect on sources and the need for consistency with its own reporting.
In this episode
- Intro and News Round-up
- Interview with Cat Lewis and Jim Waterson on BBC We Are England
- Paramount Plus and Streaming Wars
- Feature Interview with James Harding
- Channel 4 News NDAs
- Media Quiz: Old Dogs or New Tricks
- Outro and Patreon Plug
Notable quotes
“I think that you've got a problem here where you've got rid of an investigative strand called Inside Out that, for better or worse, did some really worthy public service journalism.”
“The law is moving in one direction and one direction only at the moment.”
“I don't think you can do a startup and know where you're headed, especially if, like me, you've lived in big newsrooms in the FT, the Times, the BBC.”
“The biggest change is we originally thought we were designing news for the small screen. And now we think overwhelmingly where people will get it is in their ears.”
“Those instincts you have about an organisation and its culture and ways of working are more likely than not what you really think about the place.”
“I just can't see how we end up with six or seven or eight sustainable mass market streamers because people just don't want to pay for all of them.”
Discussed
BBC · Tortoise · Paramount Plus
Mentioned or recommended
- We Are England
- Squad Dates
- Songs of Praise
- Inside Out
- Holiday Love Riots
- The Tinder Swindler
- Star Trek
- South Park
- This Morning
- Newsnight
- Dispatches
- The Times
- The Sunday Times
- The Sun
- Financial Times
- Wall Street Journal
- The Today Programme
- The Radio Academy Podcast
- The Media Podcast
