Conservative MP Andrew Bridgen is leading a move to scrap the licence fee. He's sent a letter to the Culture Secretary Sajid Javid, urging him to review how the BBC is funded. In the letter, he says the corporation should be planning for a future without the licence fee and investigating subscription-based payment instead. So, how feasible are his suggestions? And why has the man who led the debate into decriminalising licence fee evasion now stepped up his campaign? Steve Hewlett asks him.
Ed Richards has been with Ofcom, the independent media regulator for the UK, since it was established in 2004. In his role as Chief Executive, he was credited with saving Ofcom from David Cameron's so called, 'bonfire of the quangos' and been at the helm during great shifts in the media landscape. Steve Hewlett asks him what he's achieved, what the priorities for the regulator should be in the future, and what it was like being interviewed for the BBC's Director General job.
A fifteen year old has won a prestigious award for her blog about her experiences of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. Ellen White was praised by mental health charity MIND for her candid posts about the condition, and for providing support to other young people. Steve talks to Ellen about how the medium of blogging has been the best way for her to connect with others.
Trinity Mirror is closing seven regional newspapers in the Berkshire and Surrey regions. The group say it's part of a, 'bold digital-only publishing transformation', to move journalism online. Steve talks to former editor of the Birmingham Mail Steve Dyson, which is part of the group, about the strategy to move online and how this may impact on local communities.
Producer: Katy Takatsuki.
The Media Show