BBC In Drama Of 21st Century Media

Britain's BBC, a publicly funded corporation, has stumbled from one crisis to another this year, damaging viewer's trust and credibility. Sweeping job cuts are taking place this week. Director Mark Thompson is expected to announce plans to cut up to 2,800 positions due to a tighter budget. The bbc.co.uk/news Web site, which it says attracts about 35 million users a month from around the world, will also be affected, according to media reports.

BBC World, its commercially funded, international 24-hour news channel which broadcasts in more than 200 countries, BBC World Service and World Service radio will not directly be affected by the cuts, and BBC Worldwide is Europe's most successful exporter of television programmes.Media analyst Claire Enders said the BBC has to be seen to be sorry when it makes a mistake, due to its position as a public broadcaster and the scrutiny that brings.

BBC has launched a host of new channels, radio stations and interactive services to appeal to niche audiences. Its critics argue that this drive for volume, ratings and viewer involvement has led to its latest problems, including the fiasco with the Queen. On that occasion, the BBC had to apologize after showing promotional footage for a documentary which wrongly implied that Queen Elizabeth had stormed out of a photo shoot with celebrity photographer Annie Leibovitz.

Companies like BBC need to be more careful. Since BBC has been the most successful public service broadcaster in the world across its areas of activity, this crisis will hopefully pass. I feel that when dealing with the public, the most important characteristic an organization has to deal with is honesty! Just like everything else in advertising or in media; no honesty, no success!

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