The new controller of BBC Radio 4 has promised to prioritise programmes about “solutions” not “arguments” as the UK enters another decade.
The station has announced a series of factual programmes for the end of 2019 and beginning of 2020 that will allow people “to discover common ground, in a civilised manner”, starting with Positive Thinking, which will air every morning this week.
Each show in the series will look at solutions to some of the UK’s more intractable problems, from supermarket food waste and the rising rat population, to revitalising neglected coastal towns and the housing crisis.
A Guide to Disagreeing Better, which airs on the station on Tuesday evening, will try to “find a way to carry out healthy, respectful debate without resorting to insults”.
Presented by former Labour politician Douglas Alexander, the show hears from experts on disagreement – including a relationship counsellor, a peace broker and an ex-soldier – and about how to improve the quality and tone of arguments.
Radio 4’s controller, Mohit Bakaya, said: “Looking at solutions to today’s problems and bringing people and different views together will be a key pillar of Radio 4 this coming year and beyond.
“The station has long been a space for discussion. But at a time when debate has often become divisive and reductive, I think Radio 4’s role as a public space to open up discussions, for people to listen, disagree, but also discover common ground, in a civilised manner, is more important now than it ever has been.”
Bakaya was announced as the station’s new controller in July after working as a commissioning editor at the BBC since 2008. In 2018, he defended the decision to broadcast Enoch Powell’s “rivers of blood” speech in full as part of a documentary, saying the broadcaster should tackle controversial subjects responsibly.
Another series, State of the Nation, which will start on Radio 4 on Monday 6 January, will feature five writers reflecting on the past year and look forward to the year ahead.
The episodes include: Howard Jacobson taking the long view on Brexit; Lionel Shriver analysing the nation’s entrenched positions on the EU; and Nadifa Mohamed talking about how the country’s compassionate response to the Grenfell fire left her feeling hopeful about the future.
