The BBC: bastion of the right?

By Alex Smith / @alexsmith1982

The BBC, bastion of the left, biased in favour of Labour, liberal in all but name. Right?

Wrong, according to an article by Mehdi Hasan, Senior Political Editor at the New Statesman, in this week’s magazine.

In a fascinating take on the state of our main public service broadcaster, Hasan cites the Conservative histories of Andrew Neil, Nick Robinson and a number of current and former high-ranking BBC pundits and managers in claiming that the organisation is in fact built on “establishment bias, a bias towards power and privilege, tradition and orthodoxy.”

He continues:

“From top to bottom, in structure and staffing, in history and ideology, it is a conservative organisation…Take two institutions not normally associated with liberals or left-wingers: the church and the monarchy…In 2008, the BBC broadcast more than 600 hours of religious programming on television and radio, up year on year. And can anyone really disagree with Jeremy Paxman’s accusation that the BBC “fawns” over the royal family, behaving more like a “courtier”? The corporation’s coverage of the Queen’s golden jubilee celebrations and the marriage of Charles and Camilla was stomach-churning both in its excess and in its deference.”

Of course, it depends on one’s own worldview as to whether the BBC really is biased in either direction. Nothing is entirely objective and as E.H. Carr wrote, interpretation is everything. If you hold left wing values and ideals, it’s easy to see the Beeb as the older, stuffier Auntie, rather than the hip young one. On the other hand, if you’re somewhat set in your ways, or small c conservative, the coverage of Glastonbury and much of its cultural output might lead you to thinking it’s just a bit too liberal.

That wide and diverging range of views is perhaps in itself the most telltale sign that the BBC – in catering for all, as a public service broadcaster should and in its composition by thousands of uniqie personalities, each with his or her own opinions and agendas – is perhaps as balanced and impartial as it can possibly be.

Read Mehdi Hasan’s full article here.