Five challenges di BBC dey face as e turn 100

As di BBC dey celebrate im 100th anniversary, our media editor look ahead at di challenges e dey face, from competition from streaming services to reaching young pipo on TikTok. Great institutions, like great literature, dey often born from existential angst, as urgent responses to di prevailing horrors wey dey for dia era. As with TS Eliot Di Waste Land, released for 1922, so with di BBC. When Lord Reith - wey dem shoot for face in World War One - become di BBC first General Manager, e get di national interest for heart. One Scottish engineer for post-war London, e bin wan deploy di latest technology to rebuild di kontri wey don ravaged. Today few pipo go suggest building one public media institution. Fewer still would fund am through licence fee, wey some see as tax on households. And yet, as di plaudits for im coverage of di death of Queen Elizabeth II demonstrate, the BBC often remain world-class. For one century, di BBC don dey for Britons at di big moments for national and international life. Churchill war broadcasts; Queen Elizabeth coronation; di World Cup for 1966; man on di moon; di fall of di Berlin Wall; Ed Balls doing Gangnam Style on Strictly Come Dancing. Most pipo Britain find out about these things through di BBC. But to bring di country together now dey harder than ever, partly sake of how Britain don chang, but mainly sake of how di media don change. For 100 years, di BBC don use di atest technology to secure im emotional contract with di pipo. Dem born in di era of radio, and give us di first glimpse of TV. A series of technological revolutions - di internet, smartphones, social media - don irreversibly weaken di BBC grip on our culture. These revolutions connect di major challenges wey di BBC dey face today. Here na five. Trust You fit destroy trust easily, but you no fit create am easily. Frequent scandals - Jimmy Savile; Martin Bashir Princess Diana interview; plenti odas - don erode di public trust in di BBC. And dis na di age of disinformation. For one world where lies dey spread faster dan truth, di belief say accuracy dey sacreddon diminish. Social media don dey catastrophic for di news trade. Dis na opportunity for some journalists, wey spend time, money, and effort ascertaining di truth, something most pipo still believe in. But declining trust na threat to di BBC. People no go wan pay for something wey dem no trust. Cost With direct competitors wey dey valued in di hundreds of billions, like Netflix and Disney, di BBC go struggle. Im funding dey capped at around £5bn. Di BBC dey obliged to do stuff wey dem no dey do (news, radio, religious programming), E dey tightly regulated and come under relentless political pressure. Streaming services don also drive up staff and programming costs. Ultimately, di BBC go need to do less, wey means e go have to work out wetin e fit do wey odas no fit. Reaching young pipo E get one stark generational divide in consumption of BBC content. Britons wey dey aged between 16 and 24 spend more time on TikTok alone dan watching broadcast television. For di past decade, di amount of time dem spend watching terrestrial TV don fall by two-thirds. Di BBC worst nightmare na irrelevance. Losing Test cricket to Sky na one thing, losing Bake Off to Channel 4 na another. But limits dey. At di big moments, di BBC need to remain indispensable. For now, e be. But di road to irrelevance dey paved with TikTok videos, Netflix dollars and Spotify playlists. Universal appeal One related, but separate, issue na universality. To retain di licence fee, di BBC gatz appeal to all - or at least, as close to all as possible. Dis na why Director-General Tim Davie dey prioritise restoring di BBC fragile reputation for impartiality. For one country as digital, diverse, and divided as modern Britain, appealing to all dey extremely difficult. An institution wey nurtures Antiques Roadshow gatz also grow di audience for 1Xtra. Critics call am "imperial ambition". But even as di BBC acknowledge say e go need to do less, and focus on providing wetin di market no fit, im current funding model depend on proving im appeals across generational, geographic and gender divides. Politics Di BBC has always infuriated governments, of all hues. Today, there are two big differences. First, di hostility from goment na much more relentless, thanks in part to social media and today culture wars. Second, di BBC most committed enemies fit use di streaming revolution to make dia case, by saying di licence fee no longer fit for purpose. Dia agenda dey ideological; dia argument dey based on technology. E come remain one strong objection in practice to di licence fee in practice: namely, di threat of criminal sanction. Today, those wey dey take dis view fit add strong objection: e dey unfit for di era of YouTube and Instagram. Together, these challenge present one existential threat. Only brave soul go bet on di BBC current funding model survive di next few decades. But as recent weeks don show, e remain widely cherishd and able to do some useful things exceptionally well. Im current leadership get plan to address di challenges. Even as e dey slowly shrinks in relative terms, di BBC don use di latest technology to secure one new contract with di people, persuade dem e worth paying for, and keep opponents at bay. Dis centenarian best hope to go back to di enlightened vision of dat lanky son of one preacher man wey find am. As Lord Reith know for 1922, quality, no be quantity, na di BBC best hope.

As di BBC dey celebrate im 100th anniversary, our media editor look ahead at di challenges e dey face, from competition from streaming services to reaching young pipo on TikTok. Great institutions, like great literature, dey often born from existential angst, as urgent responses to di prevailing horrors wey dey for dia era. As with TS Eliot Di Waste Land, released for 1922, so with di BBC. When Lord Reith - wey dem shoot for face in World War One - become di BBC first General Manager, e get di national interest for heart. One Scottish engineer for post-war London, e bin wan deploy di latest technology to rebuild di kontri wey don ravaged. Today few pipo go suggest building one public media institution. Fewer still would fund am through licence fee, wey some see as tax on households. And yet, as di plaudits for im coverage of di death of Queen Elizabeth II demonstrate, the BBC often remain world-class. For one century, di BBC don dey for Britons at di big moments for national and international life. Churchill war broadcasts; Queen Elizabeth coronation; di World Cup for 1966; man on di moon; di fall of di Berlin Wall; Ed Balls doing Gangnam Style on Strictly Come Dancing. Most pipo Britain find out about these things through di BBC. But to bring di country together now dey harder than ever, partly sake of how Britain don chang, but mainly sake of how di media don change. For 100 years, di BBC don use di atest technology to secure im emotional contract with di pipo. Dem born in di era of radio, and give us di first glimpse of TV. A series of technological revolutions - di internet, smartphones, social media - don irreversibly weaken di BBC grip on our culture. These revolutions connect di major challenges wey di BBC dey face today. Here na five. Trust You fit destroy trust easily, but you no fit create am easily. Frequent scandals - Jimmy Savile; Martin Bashir Princess Diana interview; plenti odas - don erode di public trust in di BBC. And dis na di age of disinformation. For one world where lies dey spread faster dan truth, di belief say accuracy dey sacreddon diminish. Social media don dey catastrophic for di news trade. Dis na opportunity for some journalists, wey spend time, money, and effort ascertaining di truth, something most pipo still believe in. But declining trust na threat to di BBC. People no go wan pay for something wey dem no trust. Cost With direct competitors wey dey valued in di hundreds of billions, like Netflix and Disney, di BBC go struggle. Im funding dey capped at around £5bn. Di BBC dey obliged to do stuff wey dem no dey do (news, radio, religious programming), E dey tightly regulated and come under relentless political pressure. Streaming services don also drive up staff and programming costs. Ultimately, di BBC go need to do less, wey means e go have to work out wetin e fit do wey odas no fit. Reaching young pipo E get one stark generational divide in consumption of BBC content. Britons wey dey aged between 16 and 24 spend more time on TikTok alone dan watching broadcast television. For di past decade, di amount of time dem spend watching terrestrial TV don fall by two-thirds. Di BBC worst nightmare na irrelevance. Losing Test cricket to Sky na one thing, losing Bake Off to Channel 4 na another. But limits dey. At di big moments, di BBC need to remain indispensable. For now, e be. But di road to irrelevance dey paved with TikTok videos, Netflix dollars and Spotify playlists. Universal appeal One related, but separate, issue na universality. To retain di licence fee, di BBC gatz appeal to all - or at least, as close to all as possible. Dis na why Director-General Tim Davie dey prioritise restoring di BBC fragile reputation for impartiality. For one country as digital, diverse, and divided as modern Britain, appealing to all dey extremely difficult. An institution wey nurtures Antiques Roadshow gatz also grow di audience for 1Xtra. Critics call am "imperial ambition". But even as di BBC acknowledge say e go need to do less, and focus on providing wetin di market no fit, im current funding model depend on proving im appeals across generational, geographic and gender divides. Politics Di BBC has always infuriated governments, of all hues. Today, there are two big differences. First, di hostility from goment na much more relentless, thanks in part to social media and today culture wars. Second, di BBC most committed enemies fit use di streaming revolution to make dia case, by saying di licence fee no longer fit for purpose. Dia agenda dey ideological; dia argument dey based on technology. E come remain one strong objection in practice to di licence fee in practice: namely, di threat of criminal sanction. Today, those wey dey take dis view fit add strong objection: e dey unfit for di era of YouTube and Instagram. Together, these challenge present one existential threat. Only brave soul go bet on di BBC current funding model survive di next few decades. But as recent weeks don show, e remain widely cherishd and able to do some useful things exceptionally well. Im current leadership get plan to address di challenges. Even as e dey slowly shrinks in relative terms, di BBC don use di latest technology to secure one new contract with di people, persuade dem e worth paying for, and keep opponents at bay. Dis centenarian best hope to go back to di enlightened vision of dat lanky son of one preacher man wey find am. As Lord Reith know for 1922, quality, no be quantity, na di BBC best hope.