Lords debate Media Bill today amid concerns for future of religious broadcasting
from Religion Media Centre:
The Media Bill which eliminates the requirement of public service broadcasters to provide programmes on religion, will go through its second reading in the Lords today. The absence of a specific mention of religion, alongside arts and science, has provoked concern that programmes about religion and ethics will simply not be commissioned, accelerating a slump in religion output since 2003.
Ofcom reports that Channel 4’s annual output has gone to zero and ITV to one over the past ten years. Interviewed on Roger Bolton’s Beebwatch podcast, the executive director of the Sandford St Martin Trust, Anna McNamee, said this is a bill with commercial concerns at its heart, and lacking an explanation of public service broadcasting. The existing slump in programmes on religion was a failure of imagination, she said, as there is an appetite for religious programming and a need for religious literacy.
The petition calls for content exploring religion and belief to be protected in the bill. Campaigners also want to ensure Ofcom has an obligation to report on the extent of religion content. Speakers in the Lords debate today will include the Bishop of Leeds Nick Baines and the Bishop of Newcastle, Helen Ann Hartley. The Religion Media Centre’s factsheet on the current state of religious broadcasting and the content of the Media Bill is here. Our briefing on the story is on our YouTube channel here.
Related Posts
Tags
Share This
