BBC Bringing 'Sophisticated' News to America

real clear politics ^ | June 06, 2006 | Gerard Baker

[Jameison]

"BBC is the same as CBS a big load of BS"

I rate the BBC as much worse then cBS.
A while load of BS and more.

[Echo Talon]

"The BBC is the best network ever"
I'm Dan Rather and I approve this message! :D

[Clemenza]

What's wrong with jingoism?

[Jameison]

"I had to live outside the US for a few years to realize how inwardly directed our news is"

I lived in Europe for years.
I know the BBC.
Never seen a more rabid bunch of America-haters in my life.
They are beneath contempt.


"American ignorance of what's going on in the rest of the world is a fertile ground for the jingoism that makes for the Ugly American impression both at home and when traveling."

Nonsense.

[Jameison]

LOL!

[Jameison]

"There is no such thing as "objective" news coverage in Europe. They don't really have that concept. Every news outlet has a political agenda."

Bingo!
You gotta live in Europe to see how incredibly biased, and virulently anti-America their news is.
It's really THAT bad.

[xp38]

BBC news has to be the most dispiriting experience one can have watching television. I watched a few newscasts when they first became available many years ago and that was it for me.

[Jedi Master Pikachu]

CBS does seem to be more liberal than other liberal networks, such as NBC; Dan Rather's influence?

[Echo Talon]

LOL, i really cant tell them apart they are all about the same on the liberal bias meter i believe.

[JasonC]

"capitalism is some sort of conspiracy by evil men"

They are just another pack of garden variety commies. Utterly useless to civilized men.

[CheyennePress]

I literally cannot watch the BBC. The level of self-hatred and the whiny incessant talk of oppression puts me in the foulest mood imaginable. I have no idea how the Brits swallow that mess.

[Jameison]

"BBC news has to be the most dispiriting experience one can have watching television"

It really is.
Suits the British though.
They are a pretty dispiriting, pessimistic folk.
That's why the keep paying a TV tax that goes to pay the super high salaries of the rabid loony left crazies that hold sway at the BBC.

[Proud_USA_Republican]

I use them as a news source because the do a decent job of reporting international news.

But I try to ignore any of their coverage of the middle east, and especially the palestinians, or the US and Israel.

Their coverage on those topics is biased crap.

[SledgeCS]

The only British program that was ever produced was Benny Hill.

The BBC makes CMM seem conservative.

[radiohead]

I listen to the BBC about 4 nights a week. Yes, I've had to turn the dial when they get crazy about the Palis, but there is no other news source for information on Africa and India. The US news, even FOX, shows so little non-US/European news that I wager most Americans have no idea of what is going on in the rest of the world. I think their in-depth stories with people living in these different areas are great; it's what the Beeb does best.

It's easy to say, 'who cares about what's happening in Africa?' but events outside our borders are important. For the most part, I find the BBC far less in-your-face biased than NPR, which is almost impossible for me to listen to.

I work with a lot of internationals who get news from online newspapers and internet radio from their country. It's surprising what is and isn't covered in this country, that gets covered overseas. I'm not talking about bias, but just about current events for which our news services don't seem to have time.

Aside from news, BBC 7 has some great radio plays; like old time radio in this country. They're a real joy to listen to, if you like that kind of thing.

[Proud_USA_Republican]

Just like with CNN, the BBC believes that if you have newscasters who talk with a english accent and wear glasses, it's supposed to make the news automatically more intelligent.

[Proud_USA_Republican]

I agree. I think Fox news needs to do a program in the evening covering international news. It probably would have very decent ratings.

Fox's idea of international news is having Greta talk about Aruba for an hour. Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

[Billthedrill]

Well...it's a charming accent and I do enjoy hearing about some places I don't usually hear about, but my initial, very personal impression is that they aren't very bright. That's my impression of NPR as well but the Beeb has better cleavage...

[Jameison]

"but there is no other news source for information on Africa and India. "

Huh?
Look, with the internet, I can get all the news I want about Asia and Africa from news sources online in those countries themselves.
The Times of India site for example is an excellent site of news on India, and there is plenty more where that came from.
India has gone online in a very big way.


Africa?
I'll wager I know more about Africa than most of the folks at the BBC, having actually lived and worked in Africa myself, and experienced a lot of it's contemporary history first hand myself.
Why waste my time on the BBC when I get get my news direct from newspapers sites from Lagos, Accra etc?

[Jameison]

" I wager most Americans have no idea of what is going on in the rest of the world"

Most of the British have no idea what's going on in Africa either.
BBC news inside Britain has very little on Africa, unless there is a new famine or war to report on.
On average, I'd say Americans probably know about Asia than the British do.