Ofcom to vet programming promotion ban Having paid 'commercials' for programmes (as opposed to channels) might in theory benefit some of the smaller digital channels, but the smallest channels won't be able to afford as much cross promotional activity by...

BBC News - Local TV takes off in Austria For reasons which have always escaped me, the "holy grail" of television has always been to get as local as possible. TV enthusiasts are guarenteed to start hyperventilating at the idea...

Pete Clifton on cuts at BBC News One of the things that eight years of Labour government has brought us (besides war, lies and broken promises) is a long break from the word "cuts". For those of us who lived...

A few weeks ago I was flicking through channels on my Sky ?freesat? (the quotes are because ?Freesat? is actually, believe it or not, a BBC trademark) system upstairs to see what I could actually receive, and I stumbled across...

BBC News: ITV staff to strike over pay deal When ITV converted from being a broadcaster to being a FTSE100 'profit centre' company last year, the management were delighted. After all, becoming the country's second-largest private broadcaster meant cash cash...

Fincham outlines populist agenda The BBC has appointed Peter Fincham as the new controller for BBC One; a slightly controversal move in that it's an appointment made from the independent sector (ex-Talkback Thames) as opposed to a candidate with previous...

Logofreetv.org is a worthwhile cause: few if any of us like those on-screen logos that destroy the picture and burn a pattern into our TV screens. It's a shame, therefore, that such a good campaign should be ruined by the...

Over 2000 more jobs to go at BBC - this time from production The news that 2050 additional jobs, this time primarily from the production side, are to go, is a shock. If the BBC is to live up to...

Capital + GWR = GCap Media GCap? You have to wonder, don't you......

New research backs up old TV favourites Just because something doesn't last very long or is briefly watched doesn't mean that it isn't important or well-loved, with news bulletins being a prime example of this. (Analogy: Your doctor may be...

ITV plans to revive quiz classics for 50th anniversary ITV might surprise us all and revive World In Action and Armchair Theatre one day, but whilst we're waiting for hell to freeze over we're being treated to revivals of some...

BBC attacked for pushing Freeview The consumer electronics industry both likes and dislikes the BBC's Freeview promotional push for various reasons. It likes the fact that the BBC's big Freeview push is forcing many people to at least think about...

Media Guardian: After FilmFour, it's film flops Maybe the advocates of deregulating television are right - if there is a demand in the market, someone will fill it. After all, if there wasn't demand for the worst movies in the...

Is satellite TV fixed in Sky's orbit or heading for freedom? Despite it being essentially a BBC creation, Freeview has turned out to be (unsurprisingly) ITV's best friend; there are fewer channels compared to SkyDigital or cable so inevitably the...

Well, after a couple of weeks where the freely available ratings didn't show anything special, this week has proved rather different. First of all, Sky One has had a breakout week. After being stuck around 1.9 for ages, this week...

ITV ratings slump 'nonsense', says ITV boss Well he would say that, wouldn't he? But what Charles Allen fails to mention is that the last "I'm a Celebrity..." didn't do quite as well as the previous one, and that ITV1's...

Carry on Doctor Firstly, a warning: this MediaGuardian review of the forthcoming first new Doctor Who episode contains plot revelations that are to be avoided if you want the episode to be a complete surprise when it airs later this...

BBC Complaints - Eurovision: Making Your Mind Up Saturday's Making Your Mind Up was a live show and despite all our efforts we did have one small "wardrobe malfunction" which, needless to say, was completely unintentional. Javine's nipple appeared for...

Media Guardian: C4 radio 'will not be using Brother format' The news that Channel 4 is to buy a controlling stake in struggling digital radio station OneWord isn't a huge surprise - it's been rumoured for long enough. But it...

Ulster TV profits up by half It may be the case that Irish viewers appreciate "local character" more than English viewers, but even that alone doesn't properly explain why UTV is doing so well in an even more competitive media...

The Green Paper on the future of the BBC largely leaves well enough alone, thank goodness. At least it doesn?t appear to propose causing any lasting damage. I suppose I should congratulate Tessa Jowell, and perhaps the Prime Minister, for...

BBC News report on Jowell's opinions on burglar payment The Rt Hon Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport has become quite famous for knowing little about any of the three things in her title. As someone who doesn't...

BBC News report See you around, Tommy....

BBC governors axed, license fee to stay (Media Guardian) BBC governors set to be scrapped (Note: BBC) Bore yourself silly with the whole thing (DCMS) Well, the governors are to go, and are to be replaced by an Executive Board,...

Welcome to the March edition of EMC, with four new articles for your delectation and pleasure. We lead off with a fascinating article from Russ J Graham on Britain's first TV star, Gilbert Harding, who from around 1952 to 1960...