Biographies

Editor, Radio 1 Newsbeat and 1Xtra News

Rod McKenzie is Editor of BBC Radio 1 Newsbeat and 1Xtra News.

He runs all the news from Yalding House, London – the home of the BBC's youth-facing networks, Radio 1 and 1Xtra.

With more than ten-and-a-half-million listeners, and a staff of more than 50 covering news 24/7, his job is to make the news accessible and relevant to audiences that do not normally consume news of any sort.

He is responsible for the expansion of specialist journalism in fields such as entertainment news, youth health, technology and the setting up of a bureau in New York to cover North America.

Under his editorship 1Xtra launched its news service and has developed an award-winning and critically-acclaimed documentary strand.

He also re-shaped Newsbeat's online presence and is working on the visualisation of Newsbeat.

Newsbeat has also developed a reputation for being an audience-led programme with large interactive elements and listener involvement.

In summer 2008 he launched Revealed, a TV current affairs strand as part of the BBC's Switch zone. Revealed produces 15-minute single topic programmes on issues ranging from youth crime to young entrepreneurs.