03/03/2017 Newswatch

withdrawing its support. At ten o'clock we have a round-up of the

day's news, but now it is time for Newswatch.

Welcome to Newswatch. On this week's programme, they got their envelopes

mixed up, but did BBC News get its news priorities the wrong way round?

We discuss complaints that the embarrassment of the Oscars was

reported on as if it was an event of major global significance but

really, was it? Did you know that things did not go entirely as

planned at the Oscars this year? Thought so. Any BBC news programme

on Monday, the strange events on stage were hard to avoid. It really

should not have been that difficult, opening the right envelope at the

right time and naming the right film, but at the Oscars last night

in front of a global audience of billions, it all went horribly

wrong. Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway announced to the world that

the winner of Best film was George Best: All By -- La La Land, but the

only problem, it wasn't. As well as taking a significant airtime, the

envelope mix-up occupied the first seven or so minutes of the News at

one and the news at six and that pushed what many considered more

significant subjects out of or down the running order. Such is the first

public hearings in the government's independent inquiry into child

sexual abuse. 2-mac viewers recorded their thoughts for us. -- two. I

can't believe the BBC would consider this important enough to devote so

much of the programme to. When there is so much happening around the

world. I have no objection to this getting a mention, but keep the

headline spot for truly important newsworthy items. You are after all

providing a public service. Let me just say that I'm a great fan of the

BBC, and especially the breakfast programme in the morning. However, I

was absolutely gobsmacked the other day when Warren Beatty made this

envelope mistake for the award ceremony and it just seems that

suddenly the BBC is twisting us into a separate universe. We have people

in south to Dan starving to death, -- seltzer down. We have Donald

Trump manipulating the media and North Korea threatening a new arms

race, and yet the whole world comes to a standstill because Warren

Beatty opens the wrong envelope for the is the BBC losing perspective?

It dominated breakfast and it dominated the whole of the news for

the rest the day and in fact the next-day. I was sick to death of it.

Come on, BBC, get a grip. No awards from viewers for best news

broadcaster. Disgruntlement continued through the week. BBC News

reported on Thursday that the accountants from

PricewaterhouseCoopers responsible for the fiasco would not be working

on the Oscars again, and on Friday that they had been given bodyguards

following threats on social media. Giraldo another viewer who thought

be news was living in La La Land -- Brian Hughes. BBC News still banging

on about the simple mistake by the PricewaterhouseCoopers two. Why? We

are with the daily controller of BBC News. What was your objection? I

felt the same as those viewers who had just given their views. There

was so much time spent on this one silly item. And I think, my views

were off on the breakfast drove them, Dan Walker and Louise were

trying desperately to keep the momentum going -- programme. They

were so excited, going to the red carpet, and we went to the red

carpet and there was this poor man standing in a kilt, desperately

trying to speak to someone. He didn't get anybody to speak to him.

I think he would have grabbed a cleaner if he could. It was just

silly. I know there is always an issue every year with Oscars

coverage, but this year it was compounded. Because it is far it

makes a nice fresh and change, but viewers feel you have overdone it.

On the six o'clock news we did a five-minute item on this, so it was

at the top of the running order. I'm not saying that we underplayed it.

That was 12 hours after. But many people this will be the first time

coming back from work they will have the chance to see what happened and

why it happened and what is the outcome and the ramifications. It is

more than just a fun night and, this is the major event in the calendar

for the entertainment industry. And this is the biggest blunder in the

entertainment history's history, Julie. It is right that we cover a

range of stories and that includes entertainment and popular culture.

Mary, is the biggest entertainment story of the year and that is what

it merited that slot at that time. Yes, I don't think it is, actually,

and I don't think with the greatest respect, that it is the big media

event that everyone is interested in. Did you have a view about what

other stories were then given less coverage? I don't know what they

were, because it just seemed that everything was Oscars, Oscars, and I

believed there was a child abuse item but it was squashed into a

corner and I didn't really absorb it. That is one of the concerns that

many people have. The abuse inquiry story should have been the lead, and

maybe this could have been the third headline. It is the BBC giving

priorities to something you shouldn't. The ten o'clock news did

not lead with the Oscars, the six o'clock news did, and one thing to

pick up, it was the most watched viewed shared item across the way,

this gaffe. We hear that a lot. It is important. The audience for

bulletins as opposed to online, who know they can read in-depth. When

they turn on the bullet and they want to know the most important

stories in the right order -- the bulletin. What is the right order?

You're right order is going to be different to mine and Mary's. That

is fine. It is a subjective matter and there is no correct order to

these things, but what would have been incorrect if we had not covered

the child sex abuse inquiry and so be previewed it the night before and

we have substantial coverage across today. In the mix you have to have a

range of stories, but what news can't be is just about death tolls

in descending order is or disasters. It can feel like the BBC is trying

to keep up with social media where these stories have huge traction.

Some in the audience said it is not the business of the BBC to be trying

to compete with that kind of show business social media that word. But

it is our business to give audiences a range of stories, and there will

be people who think we should not be covering sport. What difference does

this make? Others feel differently. The same with politics. Some will

feel that we bang on too much about politics and others feel that we

don't get into the nitty-gritty of it enough. You always need a mix.

This has gone on all week, and we knew there was a mix-up in the

envelope and then it was detail about how, but that is it. Thursday

and Friday, it was dominating a lot of airtime about these accountancy

workers with bodyguards and are they going to work again at the Oscars.

People say it wasn't warranted. Did it really dominate airtime? We

returned to it. One of the justified criticisms of the BBC and the media

in general can be that we do a huge amount on a story and then the

juggernaut moves on and you never hear the end. What actually

happened? With this, we are saying, there is a development, for those

who are interested, and many were. Here is the next iteration. If it

had been the lead story across five days, I would hold my hands up and

say we have gone over the top. Final word, Mary, what you feel about what

you have heard? I think over the weeks and news watch we have at

items and complaints about the news actually putting the emphasis on

show business things will stop my view is that, please, the majority

of your viewers are licence payers and they want to switch on and see a

very balanced view of the news and I don't think you are providing it.

Please, please, we're trying make the BBC head and shoulders above the

rest will stop -- will you try to make. We will certainly try to do

that. Thank you. We look forward to hearing your thoughts on what you

have heard in this programme or any other aspect of BBC News. Just time

for a couple more of your comments about what you have seen this week.

Some reaction on Thursday to this story headlined here on the news

channel. The BBC News investigation has discovered nearly 4000 motorists

a day in England are fined for the -- driving in bus lanes. That word

lucrative which also featured on the BBC News website of England's most

lucrative bus lane cameras infuriated Edward Taylor who felt

the reporting emphasised motorists complaints about local councils

making money. On Tuesday in inquest into the

deaths of 30 British tourists killed in a gun attack in Tunisia in 2015

found they were on -- unlawfully killed. James Franklin e-mailed his

objection to the way it was treated. Thank you for your comments this

week. Please share with us your opinions. We may feature them on the

programme or you might feature in person. You can post your thoughts

on Twitter and also have a look at our website where you can watch

previous discussions. That is all from us. We will be back again next

week. Goodbye.