New BBC boss Matt Brittin said it must “experiment more bravely” and move with “velocity and clarity” as it battles falling ratings, funding rows and pressure to modernise
The BBC’s new boss vowed to reinvent Auntie on his very first day – but warned staff that “tough choices are unavoidable”.
New director-general Matt Brittin said the corporation must “experiment more bravely” and move with “velocity and clarity” as it battles falling ratings, funding rows and pressure to modernise. But the former Google chief faced a baptism of fire after being met by a noisy picket line outside Broadcasting House yesterday morning.
Protesters waving NUJ placards gathered outside the BBC’s London HQ contesting plans to axe 2,000 jobs and cut costs by 10% over the next three years. Mr Brittin, who will pocket £565,000 a year in the role, insisted the BBC cannot afford to stand still while audiences drift towards streaming giants and social media.
Producer Ash Atalla, who worked on hit comedies including The Office and The IT Crowd, blasted the broadcaster for becoming “lethargic”. He said the BBC has been “slow to react” while younger audiences increasingly turn to YouTube, TikTok and streaming platforms instead of traditional television.
Ash told the Radio 4’s Today programme: “There’s a real clock on it because one of the things that frightens me most of all is when people say, ‘We’ll miss the BBC when it’s gone’. I certainly will and you certainly will, but I’m not sure that our children will, or their children will, because they don’t have the nostalgia around the BBC.”
Former Newsnight editor Peter Barron also said there was now “a sense of urgency” around rebuilding trust in the Beeb after years of scandals. Mr Brittin insisted the corporation must revamp itself again for a new generation, telling staff: “If we were inventing the BBC today, what would we do?”
He said he was “honoured” and “humbled” to be taking the job, and had had a “really strong coffee” and taken a “deep breath” before his first day.
The director-general added: “I’m also very aware how complicated, uncertain and fast changing the world is, and I think when I look at the 100-year history of the BBC, how it serves its audiences, how it’s adapted at pace and has risen in times of crisis, I also believe that today the world needs the BBC more than ever, here in the UK and around the world, for today and for tomorrow.”
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