An article examined whether there was a causal link between 'race' hate, particularly Islamophobia, and media treatment of Muslim communities. 'Race' hate and routine attacks on Muslim communities appeared to be increasing, and needed to be addressed by developing strategies that were inclusive of all disadvantaged communities.
Source: Diane Frost, 'Islamophobia: examining causal links between the media and "race hate" from "below"', International Journal of Sociology and Social Policy, Volume 28 Issue 11/12
Links: Abstract
Date: 2008-Dec
A report examined the link between the portrayal of young people in the media and its impact on their inclination to take part in social action and politics.
Source: Our Stories – Portrayal or Betrayal?, Citizenship Foundation (020 7566 4130)
Links: Citizenship Foundation press release
Date: 2008-Nov
An article examined whether the media had led the government agenda on healthy eating and school dinners, as appeared to be the case. A close examination of the evidence suggested otherwise: government policy was already well set before the media began to show a concerted interest, and hence its influence on policy-making was more limited than might be expected.
Source: Asmita Naik, 'Did Jamie Oliver really put school dinners on the agenda? An examination of the role of the media in policy making', Political Quarterly, Volume 79 Issue 3
Links: Abstract
Date: 2008-Nov
A report examined the available data on broad social trends which might have an impact on public service broadcasting in the future. This included such issues as population, family life, identity, work and money, and children and young people.
Source: Life in the UK Today: The role and citizen impact of public service broadcasting, Social Issues Research Centre (01865 262255)
Links: Report | SIRC press release
Date: 2008-Oct
The government responded to a report by a committee of peers on ownership of news media.
Source: Government Response to the Report of the House of Lords Select Committee on Communications on the Ownership of the News, Cm 7486, Department for Culture, Media and Sport, TSO (0870 600 5522)
Links: Response | Peers report
Date: 2008-Oct
The broadcasting regulator began the second phase of its consultation into the future of public service broadcasting. It said that £145-235 million of replacement public funding would be needed by 2012 to keep public service programmes in addition to the BBC. It put forward proposals to reduce public service broadcasting obligations on ITV (commercial television) from 2009.
Source: Ofcom's Second Public Service Broadcasting Review – Phase 2: Preparing for the Digital Future, Office of Communications (020 7981 3000)
Links: Consultation document | Summary | Ofcom press release | BBC Trust press release | Conservative Party press release | FT report
Date: 2008-Sep
A report examined depictions of poverty in the media, showing how these might influence public perceptions of poverty. Poverty was a marginal issue in mainstream media during the week studied: the media seldom explored the causes of poverty, or showed the consequences for those experiencing it. People in poverty had featured in fewer than 1 in 8 of the reports, while groups facing a higher risk of poverty, such as disabled people and women, were reported less frequently than those at a lower risk. A linked report highlighted the dilemmas faced by journalists when reporting on poverty, and provided a guide to how to do so.
Source: John McKendrick et al., The Media, Poverty and Public Opinion in the UK, Joseph Rowntree Foundation (01904 629241), Society of Editors and Media Trust | David Seymour, Reporting Poverty in the UK: A practical guide for journalists, Joseph Rowntree Foundation, Society of Editors and Media Trust
Links: Report | Findings | Guide | JRF press release | Guardian report
Date: 2008-Sep
Researchers examined press coverage of British Muslims since 2000. Around two-thirds of all 'news hooks' for stories about Muslims involved terrorism, the highlighting of cultural differences, or Muslim extremism. Only 5 per cent of stories concerned the problems facing British Muslims.
Source: Kerry Moore, Paul Mason and Justin Lewis, Images of Islam in the UK: The representation of British Muslims in the national print news media 2000-2008, Cardiff School of Journalism, Media and Cultural Studies (029 208 74041)
Links: Report | MCB press release
Date: 2008-Jul
A think-tank report said that, for the vast majority of people, the BBC was just one broadcasting station among many; and that convergence between television and computers would mean that the licence fee would became untenable within 10-20 years. The only long term hope for survival for the BBC was a much slimmed-down, self-financing operation with just one national television station and one national speech radio channel (effectively BBC1 and Radio 4).
Source: Antony Jay, How to Save the BBC, Centre for Policy Studies (020 7222 4488)
Links: Report
Date: 2008-Jul
A report said that the BBC added £6.5 billion to the value of the economy – about twice the amount it collected in licence fee payments.
Source: PriceWaterhouseCoopers, The Economic Impact of the BBC on the UK Creative and Broadcasting Sector, BBC Trust (0870 010 3100)
Links: Report | Appendices | BBC Trust press release | FT report | Telegraph report
Date: 2008-Jul
A report by a committee of peers said that the race to pursue advertising income on the internet was damaging news gathering, with media companies desperate to cut costs. But this did not mean media ownership laws should be relaxed. The BBC had a vital role in maintaining the quality of news.
Source: The Ownership of the News, First Report (Session 2007-08), HL 122, House of Lords Communications Select Committee, TSO (0870 600 5522)
Links: Report | Guardian report
Date: 2008-Jun
A think-tank report said that media coverage of Scotland and England since devolution was fueling cross-border ignorance and indifference. London-based papers producing 'Scottish editions' subsequently stripped Scottish news from English editions. The Scottish media had focused more of its attention on what was happening in the Scottish Parliament, and neither it nor the London-based media paid adequate attention to the English regions, Wales, or Brussels.
Source: Douglas Fraser, Nation Speaking Unto Nation: Does the media create cultural distance between England and Scotland?, Institute for Public Policy Research (020 7470 6100)
Links: Report | IPPR press release
Date: 2008-Jun
A report said that the BBC needed to improve the range, clarity, and precision of its network news coverage of what was happening in the different United Kingdom nations and regions.
Source: BBC Network News and Current Affairs Coverage of the Four UK Nations, BBC Trust (0870 010 3100)
Links: Report | BBC Trust press release | BBC press release | Cardiff University press release | BBC report
Date: 2008-Jun
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport published its annual report for 2007-08.
Source: Annual Report 2008, Cm 7400, Department for Culture, Media and Sport, TSO (0870 600 5522)
Links: Report
Date: 2008-May
The broadcasting regulator began consultation on options for the future funding of public service broadcasting.
Source: Ofcom's Second Public Service Broadcasting Review Phase One: The Digital Opportunity, Office of Communications (020 7981 3000)
Links: Consultation document | Ofcom press release | Liberal Democrats press release | FT report
Date: 2008-Apr
A report said that the print media's reporting of violent crime stirred racist tension. It identified clearly different approaches to reporting of crime, dependent on whether the victim or perpetrator were black or white. These approaches served to influence public opinion and policy, and contributed to the reinforcement of racist stereotypes.
Source: Kjartan Pall Sveinsson, A Tale of Two Englands: 'Race' and violent crime in the press, Runnymede Trust (020 7377 9222)
Links: Report | Runnymede Trust press release
Date: 2008-Apr
A new book examined the development of policy and legislative measures to control sex offenders. The response to a wave of child sexual abuse revelations had been to introduce increasingly punitive legislation: but this response had developed in a reactive way to media and public anxiety.
Source: Julia Davidson, Child Sexual Abuse: Media representations and government reactions, Routledge (01264 343071)
Links: Summary
Date: 2008-Mar
The opposition Conservative Party said that offering a more diverse range of public service broadcasting was the key to ensuring that Britain's broadcasting sector remained successful. It set out proposals in relation to the 'top-slicing' of the licence fee, the governance of the BBC, and deregulation of some aspects of commercial broadcasting.
Source: Plurality in a New Media Age: The future of public service broadcasting, Conservative Party (020 7222 9000)
Links: Report | Conservative Party press release | BBC report
Date: 2008-Mar
An annual survey of social attitudes found that readership of daily morning newspapers had declined sharply over the previous 20 years. Only half (50 per cent) of those surveyed read a morning newspaper at least three times per week, compared to three-quarters of people (77 per cent) in 1983.
Source: John Curtice and Ann Mair, 'Where have all the readers gone? Popular newspapers and Britain's political health' in Alison Park, John Curtice, Katarina Thomson, Miranda Phillips and Mark Johnson (eds.), British Social Attitudes: The 24th Report, SAGE Publications Ltd (020 7324 8500)
Links: Summary | NatCen press release | Telegraph report | BBC report | FT report
Date: 2008-Jan
The government responded to a report by a committee of MPs on public service broadcasting. It said that, although it remained committed to a strong future for public service broadcasting, it was also aware that the existing broadcasting environment was changing rapidly, bringing both pressures on the existing system and opportunities for new providers to step in and deliver some types of public service content.
Source: Government Response to the Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee Report on Public Service Content, Cm 7309, Department for Culture, Media and Sport, TSO (0870 600 5522)
Links: Response | MPs report
Date: 2008-Jan