0:00:00 > 0:00:03post-Brexit position with the EU "pure illusion".
0:00:03 > 0:00:07Those are the headlines.
0:00:07 > 0:00:09Now it's time for Newswatch
0:00:09 > 0:00:12Hello and welcome to Newswatch with me Samira Ahmed.
0:00:12 > 0:00:17Coming up - has BBC News coverage of the Winter
0:00:17 > 0:00:21Olympics been too focused on badly performing Brits?
0:00:21 > 0:00:23We speak to the head of BBC sports journalism.
0:00:23 > 0:00:25Certain newspaper front pages made a lot of
0:00:25 > 0:00:27allegations about Jeremy Corbyn and a Czech spy.
0:00:27 > 0:00:30Did the BBC make too little?
0:00:30 > 0:00:32And, as KFC stores across the UK temporarily shut this week,
0:00:32 > 0:00:39did BBC News get clucking mad with its coverage?
0:00:43 > 0:00:53First, for the past week many of our national newspapers
0:00:55 > 0:00:56have featured headlines such as "Corbyn the
0:00:56 > 0:00:58collaborator" and "Corbyn
0:00:58 > 0:00:59urged to reveal his Stasi file."
0:00:59 > 0:01:03Allegations that the Labour lady had questionable contacts with a Czech
0:01:03 > 0:01:05diplomat and agent in the 1980s emerged from files held by the Czech
0:01:05 > 0:01:06security service archive.
0:01:06 > 0:01:08The Labour leader called the story nonsense and
0:01:08 > 0:01:10accused the newspapers of covering it of lies and smears.
0:01:10 > 0:01:12But not all Newswatch viewers were so dismissive
0:01:12 > 0:01:13of the claims.
0:01:13 > 0:01:16This anonymous telephone caller thought they were
0:01:16 > 0:01:18at least worthy of an airing on the BBC.
0:01:18 > 0:01:20You've covered the story regarding Donald Trump and the
0:01:20 > 0:01:23Russia investigation ad nauseam for months and months and months
0:01:23 > 0:01:26on end but there's nothing on BBC News even
0:01:26 > 0:01:28though it's featured very prominently in the newspapers and
0:01:28 > 0:01:32I'm a bit staggered and a bit flabbergasted by this.
0:01:32 > 0:01:36Although there were some mentions of the
0:01:36 > 0:01:39story on BBC News it didn't feature on the main television bulletins
0:01:39 > 0:01:42until a brief mention on Tuesday, and then gained more prominence
0:01:42 > 0:01:43throughout the week.
0:01:43 > 0:01:47By Wednesday on the Daily Politics Andrew Neil
0:01:47 > 0:01:55tackled the subject to much claim.
0:01:55 > 0:01:57The Defence Secretary says Mr Corbyn has "betrayed his country".
0:01:57 > 0:01:58In what way?
0:01:58 > 0:02:01Well, the Defence Secretary has chosen his own words.
0:02:01 > 0:02:03I mean, the point for me about this debacle is
0:02:03 > 0:02:04that...
0:02:04 > 0:02:06How has he betrayed his country?
0:02:06 > 0:02:08Jeremy Corbyn is a grave danger to this country, I believe,
0:02:08 > 0:02:09but that's because...
0:02:09 > 0:02:10Has he betrayed his country?
0:02:10 > 0:02:12But that's because of the ideas in which he
0:02:12 > 0:02:16believes and what that would mean for our economy and our society if
0:02:16 > 0:02:17he were elected.
0:02:17 > 0:02:18People have all sorts of ideas.
0:02:18 > 0:02:20But your Defence Secretary, our Defence Secretary,
0:02:20 > 0:02:22the Defence Secretary of this Government, of our government, has
0:02:22 > 0:02:25said the leader of Her Majesty's opposition has betrayed his country.
0:02:25 > 0:02:27In what way has he betrayed his country?
0:02:27 > 0:02:31Although the claims lacked evidence and were firmly denied,
0:02:31 > 0:02:33some Newswatch viewers thought it was too little too late from
0:02:33 > 0:02:37BBC News.
0:02:43 > 0:02:45Lynette Smith asked on Monday: why have you not even passed
0:02:45 > 0:02:46comment?
0:02:46 > 0:02:49Admittedly they are only allegations but you are quick enough
0:02:49 > 0:02:52to cover showbiz stars when years old allegations of sexual abuse were
0:02:52 > 0:02:53laid at their door.
0:02:53 > 0:02:54And Barbara Stevens had the same question.
0:02:54 > 0:02:56"Why has there been no headline coverage
0:02:56 > 0:02:57based on the allegations?
0:02:57 > 0:02:59Surely this is a matter of public interest."
0:02:59 > 0:03:02Well, we put that to BBC News and they told us:
0:03:02 > 0:03:04"BBC News has covered this story and Jeremy Corbyn's
0:03:04 > 0:03:05response in a range of our output.
0:03:05 > 0:03:07The BBC correspondent in Prague interviewed
0:03:07 > 0:03:09both the director of the
0:03:09 > 0:03:13Czech Secret Service archive and the former agent who made
0:03:13 > 0:03:18the original allegations."
0:03:18 > 0:03:21Every now and again, we are posed a question put here a
0:03:21 > 0:03:23couple of weeks ago by Pascal Freeman
0:03:23 > 0:03:24who describes himself as an
0:03:24 > 0:03:25incredulous licence fee payer.
0:03:25 > 0:03:28Can you please tell me why regional news
0:03:28 > 0:03:30is not broadcast in high definition in this day and age?
0:03:30 > 0:03:33My mobile phone can record video in 4K resolution.
0:03:33 > 0:03:36It seems very antiquated that the BBC cannot
0:03:36 > 0:03:39afford the technology so
0:03:39 > 0:03:42that broadcasts are not interrupted with the message BBC One HD cannot
0:03:42 > 0:03:45yet show programmes from your area.
0:03:45 > 0:03:48As a middle-aged person I thought test card interruptions were
0:03:48 > 0:03:54consigned to history.
0:03:54 > 0:03:57We tried to find out an answer for Mr Freeman and BBC
0:03:57 > 0:04:00News told us:
0:04:00 > 0:04:01"Upgrading the 15
0:04:01 > 0:04:03regional versions of BBC One across
0:04:03 > 0:04:05England and the Channel Islands to full HD is a priority.
0:04:05 > 0:04:07However, this would cost the equivalent of a third
0:04:07 > 0:04:09of the annual editorial budget for regional TV
0:04:09 > 0:04:10bulletins, so we have to
0:04:10 > 0:04:14balance our plans with the best interests of the licence fee payer."
0:04:18 > 0:04:20Now, the Winter Olympics come to an end this weekend
0:04:20 > 0:04:23and for the next four years most of us will probably
0:04:23 > 0:04:27forget what the difference is between the skeleton and the luge
0:04:27 > 0:04:31and exactly how Russian competitors there are not competing for Russia.
0:04:31 > 0:04:35But for the past fortnight the Games have occupied a lot of airtime on
0:04:35 > 0:04:39BBC One and Two, online and also on BBC News
0:04:39 > 0:04:40with much focused on British
0:04:40 > 0:04:43performance, some of which was pretty poor.
0:04:43 > 0:04:46Let's look at examples from the News at Ten and Breakfast.
0:04:46 > 0:04:52It's heartbreak for Elise Christie yet again.
0:04:52 > 0:04:55After failing to win a medal at the last Olympics four
0:04:55 > 0:05:00years ago, history has repeated itself here in Pyeongchang.
0:05:00 > 0:05:03Morning from Pendle Ski Club in Lancashire
0:05:03 > 0:05:06where we have been up all night cheering on the local hero Dave
0:05:06 > 0:05:10Ryding who started on the dry slopes here, and as you can tell they
0:05:10 > 0:05:12are so proud he came in the top ten in ninth,
0:05:13 > 0:05:19so well done to Dave.
0:05:19 > 0:05:20Clarke goes fourth!
0:05:20 > 0:05:21Yarnold wins gold again!
0:05:21 > 0:05:24Laura Deas has won bronze as well!
0:05:24 > 0:05:26The BBC's commentary team seen celebrating Lizzy Yarnold's skeleton
0:05:26 > 0:05:29gold, about which more very shortly.
0:05:29 > 0:05:33But it was the extent of the coverage on BBC News that
0:05:33 > 0:05:36exercised a number of viewers like Tim Elliott.
0:05:36 > 0:05:38"Why is the BBC so interested in the Winter Olympics?
0:05:38 > 0:05:42It is getting an inordinate amount of coverage following the fortunes
0:05:42 > 0:05:44of privileged people taking part in sports
0:05:44 > 0:05:45that have not been heard of
0:05:45 > 0:05:48in the UK."
0:05:55 > 0:05:56Clive Wilce had this to say.
0:05:56 > 0:05:59"I have enjoyed the Winter Olympics but I cannot believe the
0:05:59 > 0:06:02amount of coverage that has been given to Elise Christie's speed
0:06:02 > 0:06:04skating races.
0:06:04 > 0:06:06I lost count of the number of times I heard the story of
0:06:06 > 0:06:07her disqualification, over and over again."
0:06:07 > 0:06:10For others, it was not the quantity of the coverage but its
0:06:10 > 0:06:15focus on British competitors which rankled.
0:06:22 > 0:06:24Brian Bollen and tweeted about the BBC's chauvinistic
0:06:24 > 0:06:25coverage of the Winter Olympics.
0:06:25 > 0:06:27"I've heard at least one reporter refer to GB as we.
0:06:27 > 0:06:30In the Falklands War the BBC referred to the British."
0:06:30 > 0:06:32Richard Brown thought: "The BBC coverage of
0:06:32 > 0:06:33the Winter Olympics is
0:06:33 > 0:06:34pretty poor.
0:06:34 > 0:06:36They are far more interested in the British athletes
0:06:36 > 0:06:37rather than the world's best."
0:06:37 > 0:06:38And Alan Dawson agreed.
0:06:38 > 0:06:40"The Winter Olympics just shows British media,
0:06:40 > 0:06:41the BBC particularly, just cheer leads losers.
0:06:41 > 0:06:43We love somebody who tries.
0:06:43 > 0:06:44Oh, but isn't he or she brave?
0:06:44 > 0:06:46Oh, but isn't he or she brave?"
0:06:46 > 0:06:49Well, let's discuss those issues with Stephen Mawhinney, the BBC's
0:06:49 > 0:06:50head of sports journalism.
0:06:50 > 0:06:51He joins us from Salford.
0:06:51 > 0:06:52Thank you for coming on Newswatch.
0:06:52 > 0:06:56We know that some audiences don't care about sport.
0:06:56 > 0:07:03But was there too much on BBC News particularly on Breakfast?
0:07:03 > 0:07:05Samira, perhaps you won't be surprised to hear me
0:07:05 > 0:07:07say I don't think so.
0:07:07 > 0:07:09Obviously it was up to every programme editor of each news
0:07:09 > 0:07:11programme to decide whether they covered
0:07:11 > 0:07:13the Winter Olympics and how much they gave to it.
0:07:13 > 0:07:16But I'm not surprised that many of them chose to
0:07:16 > 0:07:18give it extensive coverage because there was some spectacular sport,
0:07:18 > 0:07:21there has been some really compelling human stories, some wider
0:07:21 > 0:07:24issues at stake as well in terms of some of the politics and diplomacy
0:07:24 > 0:07:25that was going on around the Games.
0:07:25 > 0:07:28And, of course, we know that there is huge audience
0:07:28 > 0:07:29interest in this.
0:07:29 > 0:07:34In fact, on the television coverage alone more than
0:07:34 > 0:07:3830 million people have tuned in through the Games, that's more than
0:07:38 > 0:07:41many of the other major sporting events that we cover, for instance,
0:07:41 > 0:07:45Wimbledon or the Six Nations.
0:07:45 > 0:07:47So there is no doubt there has been a
0:07:47 > 0:07:49wide audience interest, although of course I
0:07:49 > 0:07:50appreciate some viewers and
0:07:50 > 0:07:53listeners are not going to be as engaged in sporting stories.
0:07:53 > 0:07:54This story of building up the athletes'
0:07:54 > 0:07:56journey is another issue more generally that viewers raised.
0:07:56 > 0:07:58A lot of focus on British competitors who
0:07:58 > 0:08:00ended up crashing out, like Elise Christie,
0:08:00 > 0:08:02wouldn't it have been better sports journalism to focus on
0:08:02 > 0:08:04the events themselves and the winners?
0:08:04 > 0:08:07So, we absolutely did focus on the events and the winners and I
0:08:07 > 0:08:08can come onto that.
0:08:08 > 0:08:09But just to deal with Elise Christie.
0:08:09 > 0:08:11Hers was an absolutely compelling human drama,
0:08:11 > 0:08:12there's no question about it.
0:08:12 > 0:08:15She went into the Sochi Olympics as the
0:08:15 > 0:08:23favourite in the short track speed skating and ended up having a really
0:08:23 > 0:08:25dramatic but disastrous time and she ended up
0:08:25 > 0:08:26being disqualified, or
0:08:26 > 0:08:27crashing out of each of those.
0:08:27 > 0:08:30And then had to deal with a huge amount
0:08:30 > 0:08:32of abuse including death threats, and thought about walking away from
0:08:32 > 0:08:33the sport.
0:08:33 > 0:08:35But she decided to continue, became a multiple world
0:08:35 > 0:08:38champion, came again into these Olympics as the favourite, and yet
0:08:38 > 0:08:40unbelievably again went through a series in each of her
0:08:40 > 0:08:42three events where she was either pushed out,
0:08:42 > 0:08:44disqualified, or injured before her final race
0:08:44 > 0:08:47where she attempted to
0:08:47 > 0:08:50compete, fell over again, seemed to have qualified, but then got
0:08:50 > 0:08:51disqualified again.
0:08:51 > 0:08:53By any standards, it was an extraordinary
0:08:53 > 0:08:55human drama and kind of news story around Britain's favourite athlete
0:08:55 > 0:08:57going into the Games.
0:08:57 > 0:09:01We had specific complaints about seeing the
0:09:01 > 0:09:04BBC commentary team celebrating British skeleton medal success, also
0:09:04 > 0:09:05using the word 'we'.
0:09:05 > 0:09:09Isn't the BBC supposed to be impartial?
0:09:09 > 0:09:13Obviously we do understand the importance of
0:09:13 > 0:09:17being impartial and across our news coverage you would have seen that.
0:09:17 > 0:09:20Of course, in our live sporting coverage, there is no question these
0:09:20 > 0:09:21are moments of huge drama, huge passion,
0:09:21 > 0:09:24many of our pundits are
0:09:24 > 0:09:34obviously former Olympians themselves and they have close
0:09:34 > 0:09:37relationships and understandably have a real engagement and personal
0:09:37 > 0:09:39closeness to all of the athletes
0:09:39 > 0:09:42that are out there and their performances, and sport is partly
0:09:42 > 0:09:45about passion, is partly about that kind of excitement that we get
0:09:45 > 0:09:47wrapped up in and we want to share that, encompass
0:09:47 > 0:09:49it and embrace that with
0:09:49 > 0:09:50our audience.
0:09:50 > 0:09:52Many of our audience really appreciate that from us.
0:09:52 > 0:09:54It's certainly true to say that with the
0:09:54 > 0:09:56Summer Olympics too Newswatch viewers have said they feel BBC News
0:09:56 > 0:10:00coverage of these events is too much about British competitors regardless
0:10:00 > 0:10:02of outcome, when it should be about the top stories of who won.
0:10:02 > 0:10:04Do you accept that BBC news coverage needs
0:10:04 > 0:10:07to be rethought about whether you have got that balance right?
0:10:07 > 0:10:10As I say, it is absolutely a balance and
0:10:10 > 0:10:13always done on a case-by-case basis for every single programme, every
0:10:13 > 0:10:17news programme, and you know, I make no apology for the fact that there
0:10:17 > 0:10:18has been a focus on Team GB.
0:10:18 > 0:10:20There is no doubt there is huge audience
0:10:20 > 0:10:22interest for that, all of the evidence suggests that.
0:10:22 > 0:10:25Don't forget that Team GB are funded by public
0:10:25 > 0:10:28money through UK Sport, so we literally have a stake in both
0:10:28 > 0:10:31seeing that as well as holding them to account in terms of their
0:10:31 > 0:10:32performance.
0:10:32 > 0:10:33Stephen Mawhinney, thank you so much.
0:10:33 > 0:10:34No problem.
0:10:34 > 0:10:37Finally, Monday brought the bizarre news that the fast-food outlet KFC,
0:10:37 > 0:10:43which used to be known as Kentucky Fried Chicken, had run out of
0:10:43 > 0:10:45John Kay reported on the story the News at Six.
0:10:45 > 0:10:46Oh!
0:10:46 > 0:10:50No!
0:10:50 > 0:10:53When you've been promised KFC as a half-term treat but there is no
0:10:53 > 0:10:54chicken.
0:10:54 > 0:10:57The company says it is working flat out to rectify the problem.
0:10:57 > 0:10:59Oh!
0:10:59 > 0:11:02But for some that is little consolation.
0:11:03 > 0:11:05So, was there something of an overreaction, not just from
0:11:05 > 0:11:10customers, but from the BBC too?
0:11:13 > 0:11:16A Twitter user describing himself as Giacomo G Casanova, thought so.
0:11:16 > 0:11:21"Let me get this straight, you're endlessly histrionic re UK's child
0:11:21 > 0:11:23obesity problem, then devote a lengthy slot
0:11:23 > 0:11:25to a supply issue that shuts KFC stores.
0:11:25 > 0:11:29Who cares?
0:11:29 > 0:11:34Featuring unhappy kids and closing with one
0:11:34 > 0:11:36wailing as though it were
0:11:36 > 0:11:37some national tragedy."
0:11:37 > 0:11:38And that's all from us.
0:11:38 > 0:11:40Thank you for all of your comments this week.
0:11:40 > 0:11:42If you want to share your opinions on BBC News
0:11:42 > 0:11:44and current affairs, or even appear on the
0:11:44 > 0:11:46programme, you can call on
0:11:46 > 0:11:470370 010 6676, or e-mail newswatch@bbc.co.uk.
0:11:47 > 0:11:49You can find us on Twitter @NewswatchBBC.
0:11:49 > 0:11:50Do have a look at our website.
0:11:50 > 0:11:52The address for that is bbc.co.uk/newswatch.
0:11:52 > 0:11:55That's all from us, I will be back to hear
0:11:55 > 0:11:57your thoughts about BBC News coverage again next week.
0:11:57 > 0:11:58Goodbye.