A long period of uncertainty over the future
funding of BBC Monitoring came to an end
during a year when editorial and production
teams provided a crucial insight into turbulent
regions of the world, such as the Middle East,
Iran, Afghanistan and parts of the former
Soviet Union.
Following funding uncertainties, a review was
commissioned by the Cabinet Office, which
has since taken over from the FCO as BBC
Monitoring’s lead stakeholder.The outcome has
been a five-year agreement with an overall
increase in funding amounting to an average of
£23.8m per year until 2010/11. However, it
remains necessary to reduce costs by £2m per
annum by March 2007.
The review, led by Sir Quentin Thomas,
concluded that the partnership between the
Government and BBC Monitoring represented
‘excellent value for money’ and that it should
be a ‘UK objective’ to give BBC Monitoring
stability and confidence.This will allow it to
focus on maintaining an operation that matches
its customers’ needs.
Following publication of the review’s findings in
August 2005, BBC Monitoring began a
transformation of its services for 2010 and
beyond. Detailed structural changes, new posts
and teams were announced in March 2006.The
changes include the closure of 69 posts,
although many had been left unfilled to
minimise redundancies.
‘The funding review has left us in a stronger
position.The world of media is changing and
the transformation of BBC Monitoring reflects
that,’ says Chris Westcott, Director of BBC
Monitoring.‘We must gear ourselves up much
more to cope with the growing profusion of
satellite TV services and new digital media
platforms, including mobiles and blogs.That
means a lot of technological investment and
new ways of working.’
The review has raised interest in what BBC
Monitoring can offer and how services could
be developed for the future. ‘We live in
turbulent and uncertain times and finding out
what people in other countries are hearing,
listening to and reading is increasingly
important,’ Chris Westcott explains. ‘If you
consistently watch and listen to what a country
is saying about itself and its international
relationships, over time you can build up a
fundamental understanding of what makes
individuals, governments and politicians tick.’
Focusing on the Middle East and Iran
The value of such systematic media monitoring
was demonstrated clearly during a year when
the Middle East was once again a top priority.
Local bureaux played an important part in
giving access to a wide range of media outlets.
Coverage of Iraq focused on reporting and
comment on the continued violence and the
fate of foreign hostages against the backdrop
of electoral developments. Following the
victory of the militant Islamic movement
Hamas in the parliamentary elections in the
Palestinian territories in January 2006, close
attention was paid to subsequent political and
diplomatic manoeuvres and the reactions of
key Middle East governments.
Iran was another area of great interest to
stakeholders. Major stories included Iran’s
nuclear programme, President Mahmoud
Ahmadinejad’s controversial remarks on Israel
and the Holocaust and the behind-the-scenes
power battles that followed the presidential
election in June 2005.The growing importance
of Iranian blogs was reflected in regular
roundups of developments in new media.
Work began to boost coverage of provincial
press and television sources, including some
serving Arabic-speaking populations.
‘We are starting to pick up some interesting
nuances in Iranian provincial coverage, just as
we do in Russia,’ says Chris Westcott. ‘Different
media speak to different parts of the
population, particularly in countries where the
population may be differentiated by ethnicity or
religion in different regions.’
In Afghanistan, local management of enhanced
operations inside the country was established.
Media assessments were provided for key
customers, such as the Ministry of Defence, at
a time when British forces were being
deployed to Helmand province.
The ability of locally based monitoring teams
to track media sources across countries of the
former Soviet Union was constantly in
demand, with events such as the Chechen-led
raid on the Russian city of Nalchik, the Azeri
elections and protests, and disputes over gas
supplies to Ukraine and Georgia.Tashkent
remained one of the most difficult locations to
work from and the team’s work there was
highly praised for its coverage of the events
and their aftermath in the Uzbek city
of Andijan.
BBC Monitoring Review
- Funding to increase to an average of
£23.8m per annum between 2006/07
and 2010/11, giving stability for a
transformation of services.
- A ring-fenced grant replaces the
current subscription model.
- Cabinet Office takes over from the
Foreign & Commonwealth Office as
sponsoring department and chairs
new Governance Panel.
- BBC World Service retains close
relationship as a major stakeholder.
About BBC Monitoring
- BBC Monitoring supplies political and
economic news, information and
comment gathered from the mass
media around the world.
- It systematically monitors more than
3,000 radio,TV, press, internet and
news agency sources, translating from
up to 100 languages.
- Bureaux in many countries give
access to media that are not
otherwise generally available.
- Media reports and country profiles
can be found online at
www.bbcnews.com, and a world diary
of political and economic events for
the week ahead is available free at
www.monitor.bbc.co.uk.
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A year in review |
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BBC Monitoring |
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