The BBC's plans to close BBC Three as a broadcast channel and re-invent it as online service in Autumn 2015 have been submitted to the BBC Trust. The proposals will generate savings of £50 million. Eighty percent of the new budget will be spent on long form programmes like 'Murdered by My Boyfriend' and twenty percent will go on non traditional content such as micro videos and listicles. Traditional genres like dramas and comedy will be replaced by the strands 'Make Me Think' and 'Make Me Laugh'. Alongside this, the BBC Executive also proposes launching a BBC One+1 channel, extending the hours for CBBC and enhancing BBC iPlayer. Danny Cohen, BBC Director of Television, explains the thinking behind BBC 3's new incarnation and Lis Howell, Director of Broadcasting at City University, gives her verdict on the proposals.
The Press Recognition Panel, created by the Royal Charter on self-regulation of the Press, came in to being last month. As recommended by the Leveson report, the recognition panel will decide whether or not any new system of press regulation measures up to the Royal Charter. However, the regulator IPSO,(the Independent Press Standards Organisation) to which the majority of newspaper and magazine publishers have signed up, has decided not to seek recognition. Following the Panel's first board meeting, where does it go from here? The panel's chair, barrister David Wolfe QC, joins Steve.
Alan Rusbridger, editor-in-chief of The Guardian, has announced he will stand down from his current role at Guardian Media Group in the summer. Steve hears from the former editor of the Guardian Peter Preston.
Producer: Dianne McGregor.
