BBC self-advertising and general quality

FoxEye · 18 Dec 2010 at 17:21

It's becoming increasingly annoying, that the BBC is behaving like any other commercial channel these days. Between each programme, there are now at least two or three "adverts" for upcoming BBC programmes/ iPlayer/ other BBC services.

Additionally I now find BBC News 24 so un-watchable I've actually turned over to Sky News, which tends have more news, and less "an old man dressed like Santa visited some orphans in a small village today" drivel.

Generally I find less and less on the BBC that's worth watching, and I'm more and more annoyed with the way they deliver the few remaining programmes I like.

In short, the BBC in this commentator's opinion is going to hell in a hand-basket. Thoughts?

Pho · 18 Dec 2010 at 17:24

I record almost anything I want to watch and skip through all the rubbish. Problem solved

.

Sinny · 18 Dec 2010 at 17:24

I don't even really watch TV anymore as it's filled with talent competitions and Soap's.

I watch all my programmes on iPlayer and 4oD with the few exceptions when I will watch films or something.

Their are many people happy watching the likes of x factor, strictly and spending money on voting so it will continue to trend this way unfortunately (imo), I'm only glad that the X factor isn't going to get x-mas number 1 again.

but I agree, TV content isn't what it used to be.

twist3d0n3 · 18 Dec 2010 at 17:25

yeah, they're no better than itv.

sooner they both vanish the better

Sinny · 18 Dec 2010 at 17:26

In fact I've found Channel 4 to be the best for content, could be aimed at my age group though so I'm probably biased.

Strife212 · 18 Dec 2010 at 17:29

At least theres no adverts during the programmes

Emphacy · 18 Dec 2010 at 17:33

I don't even really watch TV anymore as it's filled with talent competitions and Soap's.

Theres over 1000 channels with SKY and Virgin Media, How can they all be filled with soaps and competitions lol?
I generally just watch whatevers in the Factual Menu like discovery channel etc...

can't beat a bit of David Attenborough. Then I just download movies...

FoxEye · 18 Dec 2010 at 17:34

Strife212 said:
At least theres no adverts during the programmes

There are, actually.

If you watch MoTD you'll find adverts for both the Football League show (OK, that's not too bad) and also BBC Sports Personality of the Year, as well as other sport-related shows (Football Focus, Inside Sport, etc).

That's during the programme, not either side of it.

doofer · 18 Dec 2010 at 17:40

I have no TV so don't watch 'Live' TV, I do watch iPlayer and the likes though, so miss the Adverts/Plugs and general promotions between Programmes, I'm really curious though, does the BBC TV like to push a certain cretinous Social Networking site at every opportunity like it does on their Internet sites? I know if I've seen Localised News they will almost always say 'Catch up with us on Facebook/Twitter' (This might be ITV, I have no idea what channels are on if I'm at my Mums where I see Live TV in the background) I find it quite incredulous that the BBC effectively 'Advertises' this site so much, specially given the commercial nature of it and the Personal privacy issues.

SB118 · 18 Dec 2010 at 17:43

FoxEye said:
Additionally I now find BBC News 24 so un-watchable I've actually turned over to Sky News, which tends have more news, and less "an old man dressed like Santa visited some orphans in a small village today" drivel.

I've noticed that BBC News24 runs out of programming quite often. With SkyNews you might get 1-2 minutes of adverts, BBC News24 will just sit there counting down from 60 seconds showing a red line bouncing around the world!

QuagmireUK · 18 Dec 2010 at 17:48

I dont watch any realtime TV. I watch everything online but I have noticed this when I listen to Radio 1 on the way to work.

doofer said:
I'm really curious though, does the BBC TV like to push a certain cretinous Social Networking site at every opportunity like it does on their Internet sites? I know if I've seen Localised News they will almost always say 'Catch up with us on Facebook/Twitter'

This in particular.

Vonhelmet · 18 Dec 2010 at 17:53

The BBC is the best TV in this country by a mile.

Someone get groen in here, he'll sympathise and you can have a cuddle about it.

FoxEye · 18 Dec 2010 at 17:57

vonhelmet said:
The BBC is the best TV in this country by a mile.

Regardless of what you think of their programmes, you can't deny that the amount of self-advertising has shot up to ridiculous levels?

The amount of trailers between each programme can now be measured in minutes.

phil675 · 18 Dec 2010 at 18:00

I find that adverts for new films disguised as coverage of a film premiere as a prime time news item to be extremely grating. I can't actually watch the news anymore anyway, its all tosh.

Westyfield2 · 18 Dec 2010 at 18:05

So much of the BBC News these days is just them plugging a program on Panorama.

And when at the start of the local news they announce what's coming up later it's "stick with us to find out why XYZ is ZYXing about the YZX". Well that's just trying to make you keep watching their program, why not just give the actual news!

Hellsmk2 · 18 Dec 2010 at 18:10

The news service has gone so far down hill over the past 5 years it's untrue. It used to be a real word class service, but now it's like watching amateur hour; the camera work is shoddy, the production values are pathetic, spelling mistakes often go unnoticed in headlines, etc etc.

Most of the articles on the website also contain blatant grammar and spelling mistakes.

Werewolf · 18 Dec 2010 at 18:21

SB118 said:
I've noticed that BBC News24 runs out of programming quite often. With SkyNews you might get 1-2 minutes of adverts, BBC News24 will just sit there counting down from 60 seconds showing a red line bouncing around the world!

That is probably at least partly because the news is largely live, they have to allow for some padding in case things take a little longer than expected.

I suspect that is a large part of why the BBC has the promo/logo's between programmes, without them they have zero ability to allow for anything running over/under except the old continuity announcer and a static screen.
The commercial broadcasters can do it more subtly with the length of the adverts and by spreading any promos etc during normal advert breaks (you're running a few seconds fast, insert a slightly longer channel ID at the start and end of an ad break, running a few seconds late, show shorter id), the BBC only really has the ability to adjust timings at the start or end of the programme.

LabR@t · 18 Dec 2010 at 18:24

FoxEye said:
It's becoming increasingly annoying, that the BBC is behaving like any other commercial channel these days. Between each programme, there are now at least two or three "adverts" for upcoming BBC programmes/ iPlayer/ other BBC services.

Additionally I now find BBC News 24 so un-watchable I've actually turned over to Sky News, which tends have more news, and less "an old man dressed like Santa visited some orphans in a small village today" drivel.

Generally I find less and less on the BBC that's worth watching, and I'm more and more annoyed with the way they deliver the few remaining programmes I like.

In short, the BBC in this commentator's opinion is going to hell in a hand-basket. Thoughts?

BBC is left wing rubbish I stopped watching ages ago.

Will · 18 Dec 2010 at 18:55

The BBC does seem rather keen on using its News programs to 'drum up' a story of its own making...how often is the third or fourth item on the six o'clock news introduced as 'The BBC has found that xxxx..... The Panorama investigation conducted by the BBC discovered that....'.

It no longer seems to want to solely report the news, it wants to make it. Investigative journalism has its place but the BBC has followed other media outlets in the rush to find or create a story rather than just report on one, and its coverage reflects this at times.

Equally it is keen to report on matters about itself far above and beyond their actual importance...staff strikes, BBC scandals and changes to funding are predictably covered heavily in the news programming. As an organisation its keen to promote itself and is sometimes self important, although it does this in a more subtle way than the commercial channels.

Saying that, I still find the BBC to be pretty good

although it has its own agenda from time to time!

markweatherill · 18 Dec 2010 at 19:17

Hellsmk2 said:
blatent grammar and spelling mistakes.

Oh!

I understand that when the BBC sells its programming abroad, it's shown with commercials. And there's more and more marketing of BBC content going on.
Therefore, whereas some years ago a half hour programme would run for very nearly half an hour or so, these days a half hour programme is quite a bit shorter, to allow for commercial breaks, and so when it is shown here, the BBC has to fill the space with something, like trailers for itself. Just a theory. Test it out by seeing if programmes that would never be syndicated abroad have as much 'white space' as programmes that are ripe for selling overseas!

This leads me to wonder if anyone can spot the points in popular programming that would just happen to be 'natural' ad-breaks, if it were to be shown with commercials?

One could even say that the BBC can well afford reductions in the licence fee, based on the fact that programmes are getting shorter.