BBC reporters are receiving training in impartial journalism following criticisms made by the Hutton Report into the death of Dr David Kelly. The ’impartiality seminars’ aim to encourage reporters and producers at BBC News to think outside of the ’left-leaning liberal’ mentality traditionally associated with the corporation.
That should be good for a laugh
The two-hour seminars will include discussions about the dangers of not being neutral in reports, and about the nature of impartiality and how to encourage it. In an e-mail to staff, Richard Sambrook, director of BBC News, told workers that audiences were increasingly sceptical of the service they provided and the challenge was to "restate the case for our journalism and to articulate it in a multi-channel world". The Hutton Report criticised the BBC for the way it handled a radio report on the Today Programme about the Government’s policy on Iraq, which ultimately led to the resignation of chairman Gavyn Davies and director-general Greg Dyke.
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