Reporter: Suphanida J.
BBC Newcastle staff continued the strike and came out for the picket line under the National Union of Journalists’ #KeepBBCLocalRadioLocal for the third time on 20-21 July 2023 to oppose the BBC’s ‘Digital First’
22 July 2023, Newcastle upon Tyne – Last year, the BBC unveiled its ‘Digital First’ strategy, led by BBC Director-General Tim Davie, to remain relevant in the evolving media landscape. The £500 million plan announcement involves reallocating funds to invest in digital content, delivering audience-preferred material, and seeking commercial investments. The strategy includes expanding iPlayer, enhancing on-demand news, and transforming regional services into digital. The BBC aims to reduce spending on linear distribution, invest up to £50 million annually in top-tier online offerings, and become a digital-forward organization for the audiences.
As part of the strategy, the BBC will undergo significant changes in its local services across the UK. It plans to expand daily online news coverage for 43 local areas and provide a broader range of local audio programming through BBC Sounds. To achieve this, 11 investigative reporting teams will be established, and multi-media news operations will integrate local news teams across platforms to maintain strong connections with local communities.
However, the National Union of Journalists (NUJ) expresses concern over the BBC’s plans. The union argues that the success of local radio lies in its localness and that the proposed changes could diminish its value to listeners and local communities. They added that this plan may lead to a reduction of 48 posts in BBC’s local staffing and believed alternative solutions can be explored without compromising its uniqueness. This has sparked the #KeepBBCLocalRadioLocal campaign and led to strikes by NUJ members and BBC local staff on 16 March and 7-8 June 2023.
The third strike took place around the UK on 20-21 July 2023 with BBC Newcastle staff in attendance. Check out the environment at BBC Broadcasting Centre, Newcastle, and hear from the NUJ representative for the local radio.
The MINE reached out to the BBC Press Office for their response on this matter; however, as of now, no reply has been received from them.
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