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Tag: David Dimbleby

  • BBC to showcase a series of specials celebrating Africa

    BBC to showcase a series of specials celebrating Africa

    MUMBAI: BBC World has announced a line-up of special shows based on Africa Lives. This show that challenges preconceptions about the vast African continent, and offers fascinating insights into the lives and culture of some of its 700 million people. The channel’s line-up of shows for July are War Games, Geldof in Africa, Journeys Of Hope, The World Uncovered. Panorama: Dead Mums Don’t Cry, Rough Science, Profile – Chinua Achebe, Destination Music: Africa and Nollywood

    The documentary, War Games airs on 2 July at 12: 40 pm. It tells the story of a barefoot festival of sport involving thousands of children, just a few kilometres from the frontline of Sudan’s civil war,informs BBC release.

    Bob Geldof leaves live aid and politics behind to travel the continent to meet the people of Africa in the six-part series Geldof in Africa. The series kicks off on 2 July at 8 pm. Geldof makes a six-part personal journey through Africa to understand ordinary Africans and, through their experiences, explain the forces that make the continent tick. Travelling through West Africa (Ghana, Benin and Mali), Central Africa (the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda) and East Africa (Ethiopia, Tanzania and Somalia), Geldof explores the continent that the rest of the world seems to be leaving behind.

    In Journeys Of Hope, former BBC foreign correspondent George Alagiah retraces his personal voyage from boyhood to manhood in Africa. The weekly documentary strand The World Uncovered focuses on issues such as the high mortality rate among women giving birth in Africa, while a series of programmes on culture and the arts examines architecture, literature, cinema and the beauty industry around the continent.    

    The World Uncovered. Panorama: Dead Mums Don’t Cry will feature on 2 July at 5:40 pm. The panorama investigates why more than half a million women die every year during pregnancy and childbirth across Africa. Grace Kodindo in a state hospital as she struggles to save those suffering from eclampsia.

    Rough Science, will air for six weeks, from 2 July at 2 pm. The six-part series gathers a team of four expert scientists and asks them to tackle challenges with just a few basic pieces of equipment, natural resources and their ingenuity. Profile – Chinua Achebe will air on 3 July at 12 pm. Profile will feature Chinua Achebe, who is considered to be black Africa’s most widely-read novelist. This Nigerian author and poet has received more than 20 honorary doctorates and several international literary prizes, and his first book, Things Fall Apart, has now been translated into 40 languages.

    Destination Music: Africa will feature performers including Emmanuel Jal, a Sudanese child soldier who’s now making a name as a rapper; Jonzi D and South Africa’s Audio Visual Crew, new-style hip hop improvisers; and Damon Albarn of Gorillaz and Blur, whose record label Honest John is at the forefront of championing music from Africa. The show will air on 16 July at 5:40 pm.

    Nollywood, will showcase the film business, which is booming and now ranked as the third largest in the world, with ten releases a week on 17 Jujly at 12 pm.

    The channel will also highlight Africa Lives through regular programmes Hardtalk, Click Online Fasttrack Earth Report and Talking Point. There will also be a special edition of one of BBC World’s current affairs programmes Question Time.
    Question Time Africa will air on 9 July at 12:40 pm and will be chaired by David Dimbleby.
        

  • BBC’s Dyke takes a dig at US coverage of Iraq

    BBC’s Dyke takes a dig at US coverage of Iraq

    MUMBAI: “If Iraq proved anything, it was that the BBC cannot afford to mix patriotism and journalism. This is happening in the United States and if it continues will undermine the credibility of the US electronic news media.” This was the crux of director general BBC Greg Dyke’s speech which he delivered at a journalism symposium at the Goldsmiths College, University of London
     

    As reported earlier by indiantelevision.com, the BBC has made major gains through its coverage of the conflict. It was also reported that Americans were increasingly turning to BBC America for news.

    He also reflected on the importance of allowing the viewer to see the whole picture saying, ” We must never allow political influences to colour our reporting or cloud our judgement. Commercial pressures may tempt others to follow the Fox News formula of gung-ho patriotism but for the BBC this would be a terrible mistake.”

    Elaborating on the differences between the way the US broadcasters cover the news and the BBC, Dyke gave the example of a BBC interview with the American Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, by David Dimbleby. He said, “When excerpts were played in the States, many commentators agreed that American interviewers wouldn’t have taken such a robust approach. The aim certainly wasn’t to win some intellectual battle of wills or to trip Mr Rumsfeld up. It was all about testing his arguments and not letting him gloss over difficult issues.

    On American television today, politicians don’t face that sort of interrogation. For the health of our democracy, it’s vital we don’t follow the path of many American networks and lose the will to do this.”

    Recalling that at times of conflict and crisis the BBC’s coverage always comes under intense scrutiny from all sides, Dyke said: “Only by constantly resisting any pressures which threaten our values will we be able to maintain the trust of our audiences. That’s why we must temper the drama and competition of live, rolling news with the considered journalism and analysis people need to make sense of events.”

    Outlining the challenges raised by the recent conflict such as more 24-hour news, the risks faced by embedded reporters and un-attributed, unreliable information on the internet, Dyke said: “These are serious challenges for any news organisation aiming to increase the quality as well as the quantity if its coverage. For the BBC, as the UK’s most trusted source of news and current affairs, we have a particular responsibility to take account of them. While seizing every opportunity to improve the range and choice of our output, we cannot afford to compromise on its honesty and integrity.”