02/12/2011 Newswatch

liver problems. Welcome to Newswatch. The biggest

strike in a generation, or a damp squib? Industrial action by a

public sector workers has caused a number of different views. I'll be

asking whether the BBC coverage was even-handed. Rubbish piling up on

the streets, the dead lying on buried, at the 1970s worry time

where industrial action featured nightly on the news. Arguments

raged over where the disruption There are objections to this

interview last Sunday. What are you moaning about? The figures seem

very Claire, we can go through the figures cards we? Are your pensions

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 58 seconds

Come Wednesday, the complaints kept Some dealers objected to graphics

showing people shaking their fists. It was described as frightening and

than necessary. It was also contrasted against the BBC strike

earlier this year. It was OK by the BBC to go on strike, but it is not

OK for nurses, and binmen. I'm sick of the journalists are sticking up

for the Conservatives rather than or the working man. That is the way

that it feels. Can you not try and be independent? It doesn't sound

like a for where I am sad. Whether or not we are up -- we are

gearing up for Ray "winter of discontent", there is at a deep

feeling about the strikes. The BBC is trying to make sure their

coverage is as fair as possible. The was on both sides of the fence

see bias. How do you ensure fairness in your coverage? This is

a very big story. Strength of feeling is very strong on all sides.

Our job is to report, to report as objectively as we can, to establish

the facts, to find out what is going on. It with something that is

very contentious, to make sure we ate a very wide range of views. We

make sure we speak to people from every side of the story. We try and

challenge unions and ministers. We are trying to hear from people

affected, those not affected. of viewers thought that union

leaders were put under pressure much more ferociously that the

government are to justify the changes to public sector pensions.

A I would not agree with that. We do indeed challenge union leaders,

what are they looking for, their roles in negotiations, what they

once compared to pensions in the private sector. Just as strongly to

we challenge ministers, the many ministers we have had on the air

waves of the last bidets, to explain their proposals, and why

are they fair, are they negotiating. We challenge all sides of the story.

Wednesday was an important day for the government. The BBBC come under

pressure from that quarter? constantly know that all sides in

these big stories have a sense of what they would like us to say. We

make up our own mind about what we are going to do. Where there were

specific complaints from Downing Street? We are in touch with all

sides. The key job brass is that we carry on doing the job we are meant

to do. Another issue raised was that he spent too much time looking

at the disparity between public sector and private sector pensions,

and not the inequality in earnings between some of the poorest workers

and some of the richest. These are both a very big issues. I'm

interested about the e-mail that you had saying this is not a strike

about pensions, there are many more issues. We did report that the

strength of feeling was felt by many issues. Primarily the strike

was focused on pensions according to unions. We wanted to explain the

pensions issue, the captives, private and public, that is a lot

of the part of the argument. There were other issues that we have

looked out, we have challenged issues about pay, fairness,

equality for the country as a whole. Was it difficult for journalists

covering the strike to cover it properly, when not so long ago they

were striking over their pensions? I can assure you that in the

newsroom, the editors were focused on the task in hand. That was

reporting the issues objectively, and all of the debate. Thank you

very much indeed. The strike was a topic under

discussion on Wednesday, with the provocative presenter Jeremy

Clarkson. Keeping the strikes are a good idea? Fantastic. London was

empty. You can whizz about. It is like being back in the 1970s. We

have to balance it. This is the BBC. Frankly I would have them all shot!

1002 saw the programme, rang to complain. -- thousands who. Last

week saw the death of the former Wales prop Paul and Gary Speed --

footballer. It also saw the death Well, we put those objections to

BBC News, and were given that this BBC News, and were given that this

Finally, back to the strike, or at least the build up to it. This

included a live link to Heathrow Airport, which elicited a familiar

Airport, which elicited a familiar Thanks for your comments. If you