Guardian: BBC3 closure 'not a foregone conclusion', warns trustee

Story from Guardian Media:

The closure of the BBC3 TV channel is far from certain, one of the corporation's trustee's has warned, stressing that the plans will be heavily scrutinised when they are submitted this summer.
Richard Ayre, speaking at an internal briefing following the publication of a BBC Trust report scrutinising the corporation's news and current affairs output, expressed scepticism that plans to put most BBC3 TV content online would prove effective.

He said that youth-focused news bulletin 60 Seconds had been "remarkably effective" at reaching a big audience. "And it's not just news bulletins – some of the most effective current affairs have been on BBC3," he added.

Ayre said that it was in no way a "foregone conclusion" that the closing the TV channel was the best move in the BBC's strategic mission to engage with younger audiences.

"It will have to be a detailed proposal, I have some searching questions," he said. "Not least will be given the difficulty of reaching young adults with journalism how does the BBC propose to ensure – through [putting BBC3 content] online or that and other online initiatives – the BBC is going to continue to reach those individuals as it does with BBC3 [on TV]. I don't think you should regard it as a foregone conclusion. It is not a foregone conclusion".

Ayre said that the BBC Trust expects to receive a detailed proposal from director general Tony Hall- which will include launching BBC1+1 in place of BBC3, shifting some drama to BBC1 and boosting CBBC by an hour a night – "just before or just after the summer break".

Ayre was joined by the corporation's director of news and current affairs, James Harding, who said that with BBC3 there was a challenge around delivering news and a "really big issue" around current affairs.

"I quite like the problem we've got," he said. "I look at some competitors, like Vice Media. The fact that looking at how BBC3 could be a digital channel forces us to address those questions."

He indicated that the Newsbeat operation was set for a major expansion, but that there would be a "big gap" to strategically fill closing BBC3.

"Newsbeat is an extremely powerful and effective news organisation within the BBC. Looking at how to move Newsbeat as not just news provider on Radio 1 but something that works digitally and visually too. But the answer is going to have to be a big one to fill the gap left by BBC3."