You can tell an election’s coming: the usual suspects are bashing the BBC again. Here’s a bilious Bun, banging on about grossly inflated salaries (though strangely not mentioning the £4.88m the chief of Sky was worth last year). Here are the Mail and Telegraph doing their histrionic political thing. And team-leading from green benches to red-faced studio encounters, here’s Chancellor George, hitting the roof over “utterly terrifying cuts” to come in a “book of doom” that reminds at least one BBC correspondent of The Road to Wigan Pier. “Hyperbolic”, sings George, while his friend David does descant, and the massed bands of Fleet Street march into battle.
It’s intended to intimidate, of course; it always is (whether the Tories or Labour are in power and waving their fists; only Lib Dems get pasted either way). And spin doctors do it for obvious purpose: because it works. Expect an insidious outbreak of on-the-one-hand-itis as BBC commentators brood over comparative cuts and consequences.
But this time, at least, there’s been an exchange of fire. A BBC rapid response unit has got its rebuttals in fast. A belligerent Danny Cohen, head of television, has lashed out at “standard, lazy” journalism. “The BBC is a great British company, not a government department,” he says. And there, surely, is a theme that could lead to ceasefire.
For the corporation, over the last four years, knows all about cuts. It has delivered £1.1bn of them, on the DG’s figuring. It will make that £1.5bn by charter renewal time in 2016. Maybe this means a few more Christmas retreads, but who cares? The savings are already “colossal” in Institute of Fiscal Studies terms, but quality and audience appreciation have been well maintained. Nothing to apologise for there, perhaps (especially if political correspondents can be persuaded to stand a little taller on air). The BBC has put up, under heavy attack. Now some of its cruder critics might shut up in turn …
■ Feel the pulsating excitement as Nigel Farage pays personal court to Richard Desmond. Will the mighty Express and soaraway Star back Ukip in May? It could be another Clacton moment. But note, then, that the Daily Express’s print sales are down 10.18% in a year (almost twice the fall in the Daily Mail). See that the Daily Star has taken a 13.7% dive (far worse than the Mirror or Sun). And register that Mr D is still trying to make 200 more journalists redundant. is this quite the lustre that Nigel seeks? Perhaps he’s supposed to endorse Dickie.
