The BBC and the Royal Family

Despite trying as much as possible to avoid the sycophantic drivel gushing across the airwaves there were inescapable moments such as yesterdays piece on the World at One where ‘experts’ discussed possible names for the latest prince. This was in the middle of a serious news programme. To say the Beeb have a rose-tinted view of the ‘firm’ is not an exaggeration. The pressure group Republic have this to say on their website about the matter:   

“In the last six months the BBC, which employs a “royal liaison officer” to ensure good relations with Buckingham Palace, has overlooked a number of potentially damaging stories about the monarchy – despite extensive coverage in other national media outlets.

These include:

Duchy of Cornwall accused of tax avoidance
Covered by: The Guardian, The Independent, The Daily Mail, Financial Times, The Daily Express
BBC coverage: none

Royal finances to be investigated by public accounts committee
Covered by: The Independent, The Daily Mail, The Telegraph, The Sunday Express
BBC coverage: none

Prince Charles uses intestate cash to fund own lobby groups and old public school
Covered by: The Guardian, The Times, The Daily Mail, The Daily Express
BBC coverage: none

A number of other stories – including the public accounts committee’s demand for the government to justify Prince Charles’s tax exemptions, revelations about the “royal veto” and the Queen’s £6m pay rise – received only fleeting coverage, despite being given high prominence by other media outlets.”

The website also detailed all the good news PR puffery royal stories that the beeb did cover during that time. 

The BBC is in deep trouble. The matter of the massive pay-offs to several cheeses, allied to the Saville affair, the failed digital media initiative - including claims of misleading Parliament - all add up to a succession of top bods squirming in front of the public accounts committee. Each and every time they evade, bluster and fabricate, their standing in the eyes of the general public declines. 

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