---

Future of the BBC

My Lords, I, too, associate myself with all the appreciation that has been expressed to the noble Lord, Lord Fowler, for his initiative and leadership in this whole area. I also associate myself with my noble friend the right reverend Prelate the Bishop of Southwark in declaring an interest. Like him, I contribute to the BBC in the "Thought for the Day" slot—but perhaps more of that later. It was 40 years ago last month that I had my first encounter with the creativity of the BBC, when, as a student, I was invited to take part in my first religious broadcast. It was to be on All Souls’ Day. The creative producer decided that the best place to celebrate this would be the chapel of the local crematorium. As your Lordships will appreciate, there is not exactly a regular congregation there, so it was decided to bus in the relatives of all those who had been cremated in the previous year. This may sound rather macabre and morbid to your Lordships, but the chapel was packed to capacity. I remember being shown to my seat at the microphone, next to CA Joyce, a famous broadcaster of the day. There, on the seat, was a shining white card with, emblazoned on it in black letters, my name: James Jones. I was suitably impressed, picked it up, turned it over and read "in memoriam". Before ordination I was a producer. It was a time when video had been launched on to the market. Some noble Lords may remember the great battle between VHS and Betamax over which format would dominate. At that time, it was widely and wildly predicted that video would see off cinema and kill it for ever. Of course, since the advent of video, we have never had such a creative period in the history of cinema in this country. It just shows that we should always be cautious when it comes to predicting any future, especially the future of the media. Also, when it comes to prophecy and prediction, nobody towards the end of the last millennium ever predicted or prophesied the role that religion would play in the third millennium. I know it is a surprise to many that two powerful religious forces—evangelical Christianity in America and Islam in the Arab world—continue to shape political ideologies. This is presumably why Mark Thompson himself in a recent lecture on faith, morality and the media said: ""So many of the big stories of the day—war and peace, global poverty, environmental sustainability, advances in science and medicine—throw up issues and debates in which religious perspectives feel relevant"." One of the distinctive features of the BBC is its religion and ethics department, which has an international reputation. It produces outstanding religious programmes on radio, and, on television, programmes of remarkable quality given their limited budgets. These programmes inform and educate the audience at a time when religion is shaping the world again. These are vital programmes, enabling the audience to understand what is happening in and to our society. I have had the opportunity, over the years, to broadcast across the spectrum. The difference between making religious programmes with the BBC, as compared to ITV—with the notable exception of the noble Lord, Lord Bragg, with whose speech I would like to identify myself very much—is that religious producers at the BBC are not just skilled broadcasters. They are also theologically literate. They understand the subtleties and nuances of the religious landscape, which is so vitally important in a culture of different faiths today. Producers who were less aware could so easily undermine the harmony and cohesion that are among the virtues of public service broadcasting. I welcome the recent decision of the BBC trustees to maintain the religious character of "Thought for the Day", not because I want to marginalise atheists and agnostics, but because introducing a non-religious element into that programme would simply change its nature—like introducing hockey into "Match of the Day". "Thought for the Day" is a religious broadcast within a major current affairs programme, covering events in a world where religion not only frequently makes the news but helps shape the world. It seems to me that the trustees’ decision was a proper editorial judgment of an international public service broadcaster to maintain a religious input in a prime-time programme. Yesterday, in the digital economy debate, the noble Lord, Lord Mandelson, spoke about the Government’s commitment to public service broadcasting as a means to creating, ""a well informed, well educated and socially cohesive society".—[Official Report, 2/12/09; col. 746.]" I hope that I may be permitted to say "amen" to that. The truth is that in an increasingly digital age when tens of millions have their own web cameras, there will still be an appetite for someone to collate, synthesise and disseminate, out of the billions of daily images, some sort of common narrative. My own view is that such a public service broadcasting service would still merit some form of licence fee, but that the contract between the BBC and the public will inevitably be constantly negotiated in a process that will require the BBC to watch and listen as much as the public watch and listen to the BBC. Such media outlets possess extraordinary power as they interpret the world to us, the audience. There is one principle of public service broadcasting that I hope will be enshrined and protected by the BBC of the future. There is a tendency within all broadcast media to dramatise every issue in order to attract larger audiences, to find the extremes on every subject and to polarise every debate; it simply makes more interesting viewing or listening. Unfortunately, to do so can reinforce prejudice and not only hinder understanding but actually undermine cohesion. A stable and harmonious society is well served by a public service broadcaster that is truly committed to inform and to educate, so that there is indeed mutual understanding between the polarities in a diverse society, and even reconciliation. A public service broadcaster is one that serves the public in all its diversity. It serves both as a model of service and as a means of enhancing the common good. I believe that these ideals are consistent with the original Reithian values, which I hope will continue to be one of the hallmarks of a future BBC.