The thirty-fifth Edinburgh International Television Festival kicks off today with allmediascotland set to keep you up-to-date with round-the-clock coverage.
Included in an intriguing afternoon line-up ahead of this evening’s MacTaggart Lecture – set to be delivered by BBC director-general, Mark Thompson – is, among other things, a debate considering the role of traditional media in the current political landscape.
The hour-long ‘Split Hunters: Is Old Media Being Left Behind by the New Politics’ – featuring associate editor of The Sun newspaper, Trevor Kavanagh; contributing editor to the Financial Times, John Lloyd; and Will Straw, founding editor of political blog, Left Foot Forward – is set to ask whether journalists should shift their gaze from conflict to compromise within the corridors of power, following the Con-Lib coalition.
Also scheduled for this afternoon is a session – chaired by ITV News newscaster, Mary Nightingale – looking at the rise of the MasterChef format from BBC Two daytime to BBC One primetime, while Scots journalist, Ally Ross, will be on hand in ‘Meet the TV Critics!’ to discuss everything TV-related.
Elsewhere, broadcaster Jeremy Vine is in the chair prior to Mark Thompson’s MacTaggart lecture, inviting a host of speakers to share their opinions on the BBC and how it ought to operate.
Meanwhile, an iPhone application has been released today for delegates attending the Media Guardian event. The free app includes a full programme of events with a reminder function, session streams, access to Twitter feeds and an interactive map with GPS function.
