BROADCASTING is the focus of two big press conferences this morning, including one from the Scottish Commission on the future of broadcasting in Scotland, set up by First Minister, Alex Salmond, last summer.
First up, between 9am and 9.30am, the BBC Trust – on behalf of Licence Fee payers – provides its final conclusions on whether to support a proposed digital TV channel dedicated to Gaelic language programming. Were it to go ahead, the channel would be run by the BBC and the Scottish Government-funded Gaelic Media Service.
What the BBC Trust is specifically doing this morning is releasing the final conclusion of a ‘public value test’ it has been conducting.
The briefing is taking place at BBC Scotland’s Pacific Quay HQ, in Glasgow.
Meanwhile, between 10am and 11am, the Scottish Broadcasting Commission will publish its interim report of the initial evidence it has taken on the economic importance of broadcasting in Scotland.
An off-camera, but on-the-record attributable briefing will be held for the media, led by the chair of the commission, Blair Jenkins – a former head of news and current affairs at BBC Scotland.
Says the commission: “The interim report will reveal the emerging issues concerning the state of broadcasting in Scotland; the factors affecting production levels and; the economic potential for the industry in Scotland. Recommendations are not being made at this interim stage but will be provided in the full report when this is published later this year.”
That briefing is taking place at the commission’s HQ: 5 Atlantic Quay, 150 Broomielaw, also in Glasgow.
