New BBC operating licence
Ofcom, the media regulator, has published the new BBC operating licence. We are delighted that this now includes a commitment to international factual programming, as one of the high level objectives.
The BBC will have a statutory duty to provide a range of international content beyond news and current affairs. This duty was not made explicit in the draft licence. IBT lobbied for this change which will have important consequences, as Ofcom will now be required to monitor the BBC’s international content.
We’d like to thank all our members who wrote to Ofcom to argue for this change, namely ActionAid, CAFOD, Concern, DEC, Sightsavers and UNICEF.