How much do you trust the BBC?
 

There's been all the stuff recently about the BBC (and other TV channels) who have not been entirely honest with us. Blue Peter was guilty of fraud by using a studio guest as a competition winner, now Children in Need telephone lines are being investigated.

Documentaries are also under fire. I'm currently watching India with Sanjeev Bhaskar and it's obvious that some elements of it are staged, even if they are supposed to be 'just going with the flow'. A researcher will have gone ahead and set up the interviews and chance meetings. I watched Top Gear last night and although it was showing Clarkson and May travelling to the North Pole supposedly alone, again it was obvious that it was faked in some respects and at one point it showed that there was a support crew of another three cars.

So, how much can we trust.

Re: How much do you trust the BBC?
 

I must admit,all that business with the telephone lines has put me off ringing in for any competitions.Not that I ever did it much but I won't now.It's the same with X Factor,I won't let the kids vote on it any more.That hasn't gone down too well with them but tough:)

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did anyone ever watch the programme with ewan mcgregor and charley boorman 'the long way round'? it was a documentary about them riding bikes from london to london via ukraine, russia,kazakhstan, mongolia, siberia, alaska, canada and america. unlike the things Gayle has just mentioned they did have 1 cameraman on a bike (which was stated before they set off) and just the two of them riding, cant remember which chanel it was on but it was excellent (ive got them on dvd) and would recommend you all watch it...the point of this post is...they DID actually do the ride with who they said they where doing it with, they met up with other people at certain points in the journey, but other than that they where alone, as was said at the beginning of the programme


sorry for waffling Gayle but i know what you mean about these programmes, and it is annoying

Re: How much do you trust the BBC?
 

I remember the hoo ha when it emerged that Vanessa Feltz had fake guests in her show.That was a good few years ago so it's obviously been going on for a long time.There's probably a lot of stuff on television that isn't what it seems.Very annoying.

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I read the book of Ewan McGregor and Charlie Boorman's trip. Admittedly that one does sound like they really did that and went with the flow.

Another example in the Sanjeev Bhaskar programme he just said, 'a group of young employees invited him to lunch'. Rubbish, the young employees were probably selected by the management as the most respectable young people in the company who would toe the company line. Don't get me wrong, I'm enjoying the programme but I just don't believe them (and never have believed them) when they say they're just 'finding' people to chat to when it's obvious that people have been researched in advance.

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Another good point Lilly, so why has it taken them so long to investigate?

Re: How much do you trust the BBC?
 

The BBC has somewhat biased political reporting.

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its like that programme 'who do you think you are' none of the celebs have researched anything about family history at all, they have 'people' to do that for them

Re: How much do you trust the BBC?
 

Good question.I agree.

Re: How much do you trust the BBC?
 

As for phoning in to shows like Richard and Judy, I've always known (as have most intelligent people) that it's the person who connects first who gets on, yet they've spun it out with the easy question until the last minute.

David Beckham is married to which Spice Girl?
A. Posh
B. Ginger
C. Safron
Calls cost £1.50

So, again, why has it taken them so long to investigate? Could it perhaps be the £1.50 per minute they get for it?

Re: How much do you trust the BBC?
 

Researcher: S.Gautham - let's give the guy a credit. I bet its a team and S.Gautham is a fake name for them.

Re: How much do you trust the BBC?
 

that will be all the first letters of their names

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If you believe that a programme such as India is totally spontaneous, then you are sadly naive. Of course much of it is staged and researchers have pre-arranged interviews, meetings, etc, well in advance.

As for Top Gear, well again it's well known that the programme isn't factual. In the last series the team were driving across America and were 'attacked by a group of rednecks'. Obviously staged and done for entertainment value. In another programme they destroyed a caravan and set another on fire. All done in a 'factual way', but obviously constructed.

These programmes are created primarily for entertainment purposes and can't really be compared to fixed telephone polls.

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With regards the phone ins -Why do you think they are so simple?

Because more people ring in and spend their sorely needed cash in the hope of winning a new car/kitchen/£10,000 (delete where applicable) and forget that you have a 1 in 100000000(ad infinitum) chance because it doesn't feel like your spending real money.

Yeah right I agree the far left never have it fair on the beeb. However it's fairer than ITV or Murdochvision.

Re: How much do you trust the BBC?
 

I suppose what I'm really asking is 'why has it taken the industry so long to cotton on'? Or perhaps, if they've known all along, 'how have they got away with it for so long?'

Re: How much do you trust the BBC?
 

It has been going on for a long while Gayle (think of Alan Whicker's holidays or Disney's lemmings).

They have got away with it for so long because we want to believe them. We all know in our heart of hearts that it is false but would like to believe it because it makes us more comfortable.

Documentaries are factual, it is just somethings that happen wouldn't happen when they filmed there so it gets staged.

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Just ask Robert Flaherty. ;) :D

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I watched the BBC evening news last week. With all the troubles happening in the world, I was suprised the first and headline story was about child trafficing in Bulgaria. Strange thought I.

There then followed a fifteen minute report, with undercover reporters posing as people wanting to buy a child for forty thousand pound. Not really breaking news thought I. Indeed it seemed to have more in common with a typical News of the World sting. Using agent provocateurs, and then using the tired old cliche, after they'd entrapped someone, of 'we made our excuses and left'.

A few days later I read that no charges are to be made against the people in Bulgaria. Infact charges may be levied against the reporters by the Bulgarian authorities for enciting crime.

With all the other scandals the BBC is becoming more and more morally bankrupt, and the sooner it stops being funded from the public purse, the better.

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i would suggest they have always known, and have got away with it cos theres many gullible people out there, its also possible some of " The Gods" in the beeb have their fingers in the pie, that would not surprise me. it happens in most things in life, for example= the demise of the railways many years ago, the guy that closed tracks n stations (Beeching) had a very large finger in a large Road Haulage company,that really profited by this action.

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It must be obvious to even the most stupidest viewer that if a programme shows an intrepid explorer canoeing up the Amazon someone has to be doing the filming and that means a support team.

Even before they showed the support cars on the North Pole trip Jeremy often referred to them. Then there is the case of not endangering the presenters. When JC and JM came across that polar bear and cub, surely you don’t imagine that there wasn’t a crack marksman behind the camera.

To present an interesting documentary the producer has to set things up before hand unless we are prepared to watch for several boring hours.

Faking scenes is nothing new though. It was done during the First World War for the cinema newsreels.

As for the fake competitions that is down to the government allowing the use of premium phone numbers were the recipient of the call takes a portion of the fee charged to the caller. If such phone rates were not in place there would be no incentive to ‘fake’ the results.

As for the competition questions. Surely to goodness even the thickest of viewer would realise that the questions are so easy as to encourage people to phone in and it all becomes a gamble.

I would rather trust the BBC than any of the commercial channels.

Re: How much do you trust the BBC?
 

Great show! I have the DVDs too.

But to the question, I would trust the BBC a hell of lot more than CNN, or Fox, or any of the US news nets. I watch BBC world news every day. And for news in general, usually reliable and very professional, the CBC ... (I think that is Colonial Broadcasting Corporation:D)

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A lot of people knock the BBC but we get a lot for our pounds. Several free to view TV channels, umpteen radio stations plus the overseas radio service, which is without a doubt the best world service there is.

OK! So they pay some presenters (Chris Evans, Ross etc) outrageous salaries but that is the way of the commercial world.

Some people complain about the standard of the programmes on BBC TV but equally there are plenty who praise the programmes. To the complainers I say use your remote control and if all else fails there is an on/off switch and talk to your spouse or kids instead. You do remember how to do that don’t you?

I have only one complaint against the BBC TV. Sometimes their scheduling will be such that two programmes that I want to watch are on at the same time on different channels. Although that will be a thing of the past once they get the “Watch It When You Want” player available to all. We will be able to watch any BBC TV programme from the last 7 days during the next 30 days on our computers from anywhere in the world.

In the modern parlance the BBC rocks.

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Totally agree Butty. I believe that the BBC is largely good value, particularly when you compare it to commercial 'paid-for' providers. I pay £38 per month for Sky, as i want to watch the live football. However, I still believe that a good 80% of my TV viewing is of BBC programmes.