A <strong>FUTURE</strong> <strong>FOR</strong> <strong>PUBLIC</strong> <strong>SERVICE</strong> <strong>TELEVISION</strong> produced some of the most celebrated output of British television like World in Action’s programmes on thalidomide in the 1970s. We believe that the lives and concerns of all citizens, but especially young people and ethnic and other minorities, are too often underserved by the journalism of existing public service providers. Young people, for example, often don’t see their world and their concerns covered in a comprehensive and relevant manner. This alienates them and pushes them towards more energetic newcomers such as Vice Media who operate outside of the formal public service compact. The dominant culture of journalism fails to reach these and other minorities and too often seeks to manufacture an unsatisfactory consensus by over-representing the centre ground. At a time of growing disillusionment with traditional parliamentary politics and, especially in the light of increased devolutionary pressures, we believe that news providers need to adopt not simply a more technologically sophisticated grasp of digital media but a model of journalism that is less wedded to the production of consensus politics and more concerned with articulating differences. Television, as Richard Hoggart reminds us in relation to the Pilkington Inquiry, “should not hesitate to reflect ‘The quarrel of this society with itself’, even though politicians may not like the result.” 419 We believe that this is the case today just as much as it was in 1962. Drama Drama, including soaps, is one of the most popular genres associated with the remit of public service. The genre’s popularity, with an average audience share of 17% in 2015, is matched by its high costs. As one of the most expensive genres, a typical, prime-time homegrown drama costs between £500,000 and £1 million per hour. 420 While public service channels continue to be highest investors in the genre, Ofcom’s 2015 review of public service broadcasting reported a 31% fall in investment in original drama since 2008. 421 Although audience satisfaction with drama is stable, 422 BARB figures show that the average time spent watching drama series and soaps on the main channels fell by 50% between 2003 and 2015. 423 This does not appear to signal a lack of interest in drama itself as falling levels of investment by PSBs has been, at least in part, offset by a huge increase in co-productions and pay TV platforms offering globally appealing US content. Streaming services such as Netflix and Amazon appeal to younger demographics, and the subscription take-up has been exponential, with almost a quarter of UK households subscribed to Netflix by the end of 2015. 424 They are changing our viewing habits too, with ‘binge viewing’ becoming an increasingly popular way of engaging with quality, complex drama. The domination of US content is also clear with a doubling of American scripted shows, from 200 to an estimated 409, with content produced for streaming media experiencing the largest jump. 425 Netflix has recently 419 Richard Hoggart, A Measured Life, London: Transaction Publishers, 1994, p. 66. 420 Tunstall, 2015, p. 91. 421 Ofcom, presentation to the Inquiry, September 29, 2015. 422 Ofcom, Public Service Broadcasting in the Internet Age: Ofcom’s Third Review of Public Service Broadcasting. July 2015. 423 Thinkbox, presentation to the Inquiry, April 19, 2016. 424 Jasper Jackson, ‘Netflix races ahead of Amazon and Sky with 5m UK households’, the Guardian, March 22, 2016. 425 Josef Adalian, ‘There Were Over 400 scripted TV shows on the Air in 2015’, Vulture, December 16, 2015. 134
Sports content now accounts for some 46% of all investment in first-run UK original programming Source: Ofcom 135
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