DIFERENÇAS DE CULTURAS
John Willis é o novo Director da área da BBC que produz programas de televisão da área documental e de ensino. Durante um ano trabalhou nos Estados Unidos, num canal de Boston a WGBH. Há poucos dias fez um curioso discurso sobre as diferenças na forma de produzir televisão entre os dois países, quer em programas de entretenimento, quer em noticiários. Willis não é meigo na análise e não hesita em dizer que os media norte-americanos em geral e os noticiários de televisão em particular muitas vezes ultrapassam os limites na opinião e na posição editorial de que partem para fazer os seus trabalhos.
Uma citação, com a devida vénia:
«Above all there was little or no debate. America’s political leaders remained unchallenged. Any lack of patriotism was punished with McCarthyite vigor, even in the television industry, where CBS’s Ed Gernon was summarily dismissed for a mild case of expressing his opinion. Public television was a rare haven for robust questioning and independent reporting, but PBS is relatively marginal to American culture.
Watching BBC World or seeing reporters from ITV, BBC and Sky within network reports or watching CSPAN’s coverage of British Parliamentary debates made me – and many Americans – realize just what the world’s largest democracy was missing. No wonder viewers for BBC America and BBC website hits rose significantly.
For all the warts on British television, a year in America has taught me just how lucky we are to have not just the BBC but a range of diversely funded channels with different layers of public service ambitions and obligations. The lesson from America is that if news and public affairs are left purely to the market, it will most likely give the government what it wants.»
O discurso na íntegra pode ser lido aqui
John Willis é o novo Director da área da BBC que produz programas de televisão da área documental e de ensino. Durante um ano trabalhou nos Estados Unidos, num canal de Boston a WGBH. Há poucos dias fez um curioso discurso sobre as diferenças na forma de produzir televisão entre os dois países, quer em programas de entretenimento, quer em noticiários. Willis não é meigo na análise e não hesita em dizer que os media norte-americanos em geral e os noticiários de televisão em particular muitas vezes ultrapassam os limites na opinião e na posição editorial de que partem para fazer os seus trabalhos.
Uma citação, com a devida vénia:
«Above all there was little or no debate. America’s political leaders remained unchallenged. Any lack of patriotism was punished with McCarthyite vigor, even in the television industry, where CBS’s Ed Gernon was summarily dismissed for a mild case of expressing his opinion. Public television was a rare haven for robust questioning and independent reporting, but PBS is relatively marginal to American culture.
Watching BBC World or seeing reporters from ITV, BBC and Sky within network reports or watching CSPAN’s coverage of British Parliamentary debates made me – and many Americans – realize just what the world’s largest democracy was missing. No wonder viewers for BBC America and BBC website hits rose significantly.
For all the warts on British television, a year in America has taught me just how lucky we are to have not just the BBC but a range of diversely funded channels with different layers of public service ambitions and obligations. The lesson from America is that if news and public affairs are left purely to the market, it will most likely give the government what it wants.»
O discurso na íntegra pode ser lido aqui
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