|
|
Article: Major turn-off: broadcasting and politics. (BBC broadcast of interview with Prime Minister John Major banned by Scottish court)
- Article from:
- The Economist (US)
- Article date:
- April 8, 1995
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1995 Economist Newspaper Ltd. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
|
POLITICIANS may start using judges to overturn journalistic decisions by programme makers, claims the BBC in the wake of a decision by Scottish judges on April 3rd to ban a BBC interview with John Major from Scottish screens. Though this may sound like self-serving tosh, the BBC, as well as its commercial television rivals, may really have something to worry about. If the Scottish decision becomes an important precedent, the biggest losers of all could be the British public, who might yet see their access to television news restricted by red tape and repeated court cases.
Unfortunately the BBC itself, through either incompetence or arrogance (or possibly both), ...