BBC Journalist Clive Myrie Calls on New U.K. Culture Minister to Commit to Public Service Broadcasting, Praises Corporation’s Impartiality

The BBC will say farewell to two more high-profile presenters with the departure of Fi Glover and Jane Garvey. 

With a new British government, specifically a new culture secretary, in place, the decisions to privatize Channel 4 and to scrap the BBC licence fee are being reviewed. 

K.J. Yossman The U.K.’s new culture secretary, Michelle Donelan, has made her first public statements about the potential sale of public broadcaster Channel 4 and the future of the BBC license fee. “We’re looking at the business case for the sale of Channel 4 and making sure we still agree with that decision and that’s what I’m doing,” she said of selling the advertising-funded PSB. Of the BBC, Donelan said: “It’s no secret that I have been a sceptic for a long time of the license fee but as I said before, the approach I take on all policies is one to base my decisions on evidence and to also listen. So I’m only two weeks in the job, I’m not going to make policy on the hoof, I’m going to look at this properly.”

BBC viewers have urged for the broadcaster to be ‘protected’ after praising coverage of the Queen’s funeral today. Huw Edwards led coverage today, with Kirsty Young, Fergal Keane, David Dimbleby, and Sophie Raworth were also on the bill to cover the historic event alongside him. The monumental event, which is expected to become the most watched global broadcast in history with an approximate 4.

Queen Elizabeth II made history on Tuesday, when she both accepted the resignation of former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and appointed new Prime Minister Liz Truss at Balmoral Castle in Scotland. Truss is England's third female prime minister and the 15th prime minister to serve during the queen's 70-year reign. Breaking tradition, the 96-year-old reigning monarch chose to relocate the symbolic events due to her ongoing health and mobility issues.

K.J. Yossman New U.K. Prime Minister Liz Truss has appointed Michelle Donelan as the new secretary of state for culture. Donelan replaces Nadine Dorries, who resigned from the post on Tuesday morning. Dorries, a former actor and romance novelist who was appointed by former premier Boris Johnson, said Truss had asked her to stay on as culture secretary but declined the offer. She had been in the post less than a year. Donelan, who has previously served as minister for higher education and secretary for education, will now be responsible for the department of digital, culture, media and sports. Among the top items for consideration will be whether to go ahead with privatizing Channel 4, which both Johnson and Dorries had committed to despite industry-wide criticism of the move, as well as reviewing the BBC’s license fee. As well as freezing the license fee, which is a mandatory levy for anyone who watches live television on any network or device, Dorries had indicated she hoped to eventually do away with it altogether.

New Prime Minister Liz Truss has announced her new Cabinet this evening (September 6) after she was appointed as Prime Minister by the Queen at Balmoral earlier on Tuesday. It follows on from her first speech to the nation, in which she said that her government would "transform Britain into an aspiration nation" and that "together we can ride out the storm".

Queen Elizabeth II made history on Tuesday, both accepting the resignation of former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and appointing new Prime Minister Liz Truss at Balmoral Castle in Scotland. Truss is England's third female prime minister and the 15th prime minister to serve during the queen's 70-year reign. Breaking tradition, the 96-year-old reigning monarch chose to relocate the symbolic events due to her ongoing health and mobility issues.

BBC Chair Richard Sharp has said MacTaggart lecturer Emily Maitlis was “completely wrong” to say due process was not followed after her now-infamous Dominic Cummings Newsnight rant.

UK Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries is to stand down when Liz Truss formally takes over as Prime Minister today.

An obsessed stalker who has had a three-decade fixation with former BBC Newsnight presenter Emily Maitlis has been jailed for eight years after attempting to breach a restraining order for the 20th time. Edward Vines wrote eight letters addressed to Maitlis and her mother expressing his “unrequited” love for her, which he tried to send from HMP Nottingham between May 2020 and December 2021.

Liz Truss has been announced as the new Prime Minister of the UK, beating former Chancellor Rishi Sunak. The election was announced after Boris Johnson announced his resignation just under two months ago.

Liz Truss has appeared to rule out an early election as she was named new Prime Minister on Monday (September 5). The current foreign secretary will be handed the keys to Number 10 Downing Street on Tuesday (September 5) after Boris Johnson officially tenders his resignation in a meeting with the Queen at Balmoral.

Liz Truss has been announced as the next Prime Minister. The current foreign secretary won with 81,326 votes from the Tory membership, to Rishi Sunak’s 60,399.

The BBC and Channel 4 may fear the worst as the anti-Public Service Broadcasting agenda led by Boris Johnson’s administration looks set to continue under a Liz Truss premiership, with all eyes trained on whether Nadine Dorries remains Culture Secretary.

K.J. Yossman Liz Truss is the new U.K. Prime Minister. Truss will replace Boris Johnson, who stepped down from the role in July following numerous scandals. She becomes the U.K.’s third female Prime Minister, following Margaret Thatcher and Theresa May. In her speech she thanked “my friend” Johnson. “You got Brexit done. You crushed Jeremy Corbyn. You rolled out the vaccine and you stood up to Putin.” Truss, who was the secretary of state for foreign, commonwealth and development affairs, and Rishi Sunak, who was previously Chancellor of the Exchequor, were both frontrunners for the job (pictured above). They are both Conservative Party members of parliament (MPs).

K.J. Yossman The U.K.’s cross-party DCMS Committee, which scrutinizes the spending, policies and administration of the government Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, is set to interrogate BBC bosses on impartiality, the license fee and earnings. The committee, which is chaired by Julian Knight, is set to convene on Tuesday, Sept. 6 to question BBC director general Tim Davie, BBC chair Richard Sharp and BBC COO Leigh Tavaziva. They will ask questions on topics including how the corporation “plans to remain relevant and effective in the modern media landscape,” “how the BBC’s offering is impacted by a more polarised political atmosphere” and the future of the license fee in light of soaring inflation rates.