Whose News is it Anyway?

Everyone has found things tough during the recession, including the media. Here we analyse two different perspectives on delivering news.
As you, our readers are the key to the future of this publication; we would love to hear your views on what you expect from The BBC, your local and national broadcasters, papers and online news platforms.

Today Atholl Duncan, Head of BBC News and Current Affairs, promised an ongoing commitment to the people of Glasgow.
Following a workshop on the future of broadcasting we spoke exclusively to Mr Duncan.
He said; ‘The BBC invested £180m in the most advanced broadcasting centre in Europe, right here in the heart of Glasgow.’
‘It employs 1200 directly and hundreds of others indirectly. There is a huge economic benefit to the city in terms of having the BBC here.
‘It’s only natural as we are based here - a lot of our content will have a Glasgow slant or a Glasgow angle.
‘But our job is wider than that. We have to serve the whole of Scotland – it’s important that we deliver for everyone from Shetland to Shettleston.’
However, not everyone is convinced that the corporation is going in the right direction in terms of delivering local news.
Heather McMillan, Project Manager at Sunny Govan Radio, argues that the BBC should open up and co-operate with local news specialists.
She said: ‘To be honest the BBC Scotland put out much of the same news as STV. There are stories which get missed or cut short at the expense of their daily obsession with Rangers and Celtic.
‘How often do the news cover stories in Possilpark and in Castlemilk? – Not often and not enough.
‘When it comes to the climate change conference in Copenhagen coverage, where are the voices from the people of Glasgow?
‘Sunny Govan – and other local news providers in broadcast, online and in print like Local News Glasgow – are well placed to help the BBC.
‘I have approached the BBC in the past and while they are very helpful and friendly we’ve never had a contract or done any work in co-operation with them.
‘You could say that the BBC has been a bit of a dinosaur in terms of meeting local needs.’