Broadcast Newswrap

Mega-merger mayhem

The global TV world was rocked this week by the £36bn AT&T/Discovery mega-merger, an eventuality that no one had really seen coming bar a handful of US execs who enjoy a spot of golf.

International gurus John Elmes and Jesse Whittock are joined by Ampere Analysis research director Richard Broughton to discuss, in a week that also saw reports of a potential Amazon/MGM buyout. The trio talk serious scale, ambition and the ripple effects on the UK indie sector as a new future is carved out for these conglomerates. 

Later, we’ve got exclusive audio from the Broadcast/Screen Restart Conference session with ITV and C4 drama heads Polly Hill and Caroline Hollick, who chatted to Broadcast Intelligence senior content researcher Heather Fallon.

All that, plus a snooker loopy ‘What We’ve Been Watchin’’, on this week’s Broadcast Newswrap

TV's HR problem

Max Goldbart and Hannah Bowler are joined by Meriel Beale and Alex Pumfrey to discuss tackling issues of bullying and harrassment in light of recent high-profile cases

Solving the 16-34 conundrum

If you’ve been living under a rock for the past five years you may have missed the broadcasters being a little bit worried about those elusive 16-34s. 

As young indie bosses forging youth-skewing shows, Big Deal Films’ Dhanny Joshi and Studio Be’s Brandon Relph think about this demographic quite a bit. They joined the Newswrap this week to tell us more.

Speaking to Max Goldbart and Hannah Bowler, Dhanny and Brandon assess the broadcasters’ successes and failings with the demographic, talk about how SVoD hiring practices could have an impact on their young-viewer output, and discuss the state of play with top talent. 

All that, plus a youth-skewin’ ‘What We’ve Been Watchin’’, on this week’s Broadcast Newswrap 

Music: The Vendetta by Steffan Kartenberg. Licensed by Creative Commons

Sports broadcasting and the short-lived ESL

After a 48-hour period like no other in sport, the English Super League (ESL) is no more. But that won't stop the Newswrap from using this opportunity to assess the state of play in sports broadcasting. 

Joining Jesse Whittock on the pod this week is Whisper managing director Mark Cole, a former head of football at the BBC, along with Broadcast Sport editor Jake Bickerton and contributor Max Miller. 

The quartet mull over the impact the ESL could have had on an already fragmented sector, and consider the state of play now that the much-maligned league has been cast to the annals of history. 

All that, plus plenty of 'What We've Been Watchin'', on this week's Broadcast Newswrap.

This week’s podcast was sponsored by the Creative Cities Convention. 

Music: The Vendetta by Steffan Kartenberg. Licensed by Creative Commons

Duty of care special

Ofcom’s new duty of care regulations came into force this month, almost exactly two years after the Jeremy Kyle Show was axed following the death of a contestant a week after filming an episode.

In this week’s duty of care special, senior reporter Max Goldbart is joined by The Garden founder Magnus Temple, reality supremo Katy Manley from Big Brother producer Initial and BBC Studios Documentary Unit’s Kirsty Cunningham.

The group dissect what duty of care looks like for their respective genres and suggest that the pandemic has thrown up challenges for programme-makers as well as contributors.

Later on, Max asks ’What We’ve Been Watchin’’, leading to a few nods to a certain critically-acclaimed French comedy-drama.

This week's episode is sponsored by Creative Cities Convention. Visit www.creativecitiesconvention.com for more information and to buy a ticket.

Music: The Vendetta by Steffan Kartenberg. Licensed by Creative Commons

The pandemic: one year on

Broadcast unveiled its annual Indie Survey this week, which lifted the lid on the impact of Covid-19 on the production sector in this strangest of years. The Newswrap takes a deep dive into the survey’s top lines, with Netflix coming out on top, the scripted market recovering after a 20% revenue drop and the survival of nimble true indies. Later, we have exclusive audio from international editor John Elmes’ catch-up with US comedy supremo Paul Feig, who weighed in on Hollywood’s diversity problem and revealed a certain Ben Elton comedy as his ‘What We’ve Been Watchin’
All that, plus much more, on this week’s Broadcast Newswrap. 

BBC N&R shake up plus Football's Darkest Secret

​Tim Davie unveiled the BBC’s ”biggest progamme of reform” for a generation this week.

With half of the BBC’s news teams relocating out of London, commissioning posts springing up all over and a renewed focus on portraying communities nationwide, the work really starts now for the DG, and Max Goldbart and Jesse Whittock are on hand to talk through the transformative proposals and discuss what is coming next. 

Elsewhere, the Newswrap is joined by Daniel Gordon and Hugh Davies, the director and producer behind BBC1’s Football’s Darkest Secret - a harrowing three-part doc series that tells the story of the UK’s football sex abuse scandal.

Piers Morgan saga: what next

Following a whirlwind week, the Broadcast Newswrap gets into the weeds of Piers Morgan’s GMB departure and Bectu head Philippa Childs is on hand to assess how it will impact the industry’s fight against bullying and harassment.

In response to Ian Katz’s stern warning to on-screen talent, Philippa urges the broadcasters to be more transparent and make a strong public statement against bullying.

Meanwhile, international editor John Elmes, reporter Hannah Bowler and senior reporter Max Goldbart discuss GMB succession plans and mull the future of Piers Morgan’s Life Stories.

Plus, a riveting edition of everyone's favourite ’What We’ve Been Watchin’’ section, featuring a royal interview, a Channel 4 90s cult classic and a double helping of Jed Mercurio. 

International Women's Day special

Broadcast is joined by the Faye Ward and Hannah Farrell, from multi-award-winning indie Fable Pictures, and award-winning film and TV director Sarah Gavron to discuss female representation in the content world.

Ward, Farrell and Gavron, who have teamed up previously on projects including Suffragette and hit 2020 Netflix film Rocks discuss their experiences as female creatives in the film and TV industry and explore what the landscape is like today.

Jon Thoday on BBC3's long-awaited return

Avalon founder Jon Thoday was one of the masterminds of the 2015 campaign to save BBC3 from going online only.

More than five years on, he joins the Newswrap this week to reflect on the BBC’s extraordinary u-turn, with BBC3 set to return to the EPG next January. 

Speaking to senior reporter Max Goldbart and editor-in-chief Chris Curtis, Jon considers how a return to linear is just the start and the BBC needs to do much more to boost its offer for young people, including making more than £80m available to spend on BBC3 content each year. 

To hear his take on what needs to come next and how the BBC can go about filling a nine-hour-per-day linear channel, check out this week’s pod.