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BBC News

BBC News

BBC News and Current Affairs (sometimes abbreviated BBC NCA) is a major arm of the BBC responsible for the corporation's newsgathering and production of news programmes on BBC television, radio and online. It claims to be the largest broadcast news gathering operation in the world and produces almost 100 hours of output daily. The current director is Helen Boaden. BBC News carries out a key objective of the BBC's Royal Charter, to "collect news and information in any part of the world and in any manner that may be thought fit". BBC News is based at the News Centre at Television Centre (TVC) and operates regional centres across the United Kingdom as well as 44 newsgathering bureaux around the world. Of these bureaux, 41 are based overseas. Political coverage is based at the Millbank Studios in Westminster. The News Centre brought radio and TV news operations together for the first time in BBC history. Due to the non-central location of TVC, however, the News Centre is due to move to BBC Radio's headquarters - BBC Broadcasting House, Central London in 2008. The News department consists of 3,500 staff of which 2,000 are journalists. The annual budget of BBC News is £350 million per year. BBC News output has won critical acclaim worldwide and praise for its unbiased and balanced reporting. It is, however, not free from controversies, the most recent being the Hutton Report which led to a shakeup of the corporation's operations. Within the United Kingdom BBC News faces stiff competition from Sky News and ITN. However, research has shown that viewers turn to the BBC for coverage of major events such as the Iraq war and September 11th attacks. In 2005, it was announced that the Six O'Clock News was the most popular daily news programme whilst the corporation's 24 hour rolling news channel, BBC News 24, was the most popular 24 hour news channel in Britain[http://news.bbc.co.uk/newswatch/ukfs/hi/newsid_4000000/newsid_4001900/4001991.stm].

History

Britain Britain The British Broadcasting Company broadcast its first radio bulletin on November 14 1922. On July 5 1954, the first television news bulletin was broadcast. The BBC celebrated 50 years of Television News on July 5 2004. The BBC television service originally carried news in the form of images with a newsreader narrating but off camera, having decided that a newsreader on screen would distract viewers from the stories. Newsreels had been in use for some time, shown at cinemas and other places of public gathering. These were adapted as Television Newsreel programmes. Several variations in how the main news programmes were named and shown occured with programmes such as Nationwide coming and going. A major relaunch of BBC television news output in 1993 included abolition of variation in sets and titles in favour of a single set with a common theme. The times of the main bulletins —one o'clock, six o'clock and nine o'clock, were, however unchanged, and the music, whilst consistent in style, was based on the previous theme adopted by each programme. The new set was a small one which took advantage of Silicon Graphics systems to create a virtual studio which appeared to be huge. The titles commenced with the BBC News logo imposed on a spinning globe, widening to reveal a glass sculpture of the BBC coat of arms (again computer generated) in front of a panoramic view of the studio. The colour of the sets varied, getting progressively darker throughout the day. Likewise the style of the theme changed, from a bright and driving theme for Breakfast News to an authoritative and more sombre version for the Nine O'Clock News. In 1997 the programme titles were altered slighlty to incorporate the new corporate logo and in 1999 the biggest relaunch occurred, with BBC One bulletins, BBC World and BBC News 24 adopting a common style. Most significantly BBC regional news programmes adopted the new corporate image for the first time, giving a common style across local, national and international BBC television news. It also caused changes to regional news. Regional stories were incorporated into the six o'clock news headlines. They English regions lost some time, however, as these regions now rejoined London for a national round-up at 6.55. Over the next few years the regional news programmes began adopting a unified look in line with the national news. Regional headlines were also added to the one o'clock news, and the main evening news, when it moved from nine o'clock to ten o'clock. In 1998 most of BBC Radio News joined BBC Television News at TVC in the new "News Centre" complex at the front of the building. In 2008 all BBC News, national radio and BBC World Service broadcasts will be moved to Broadcasting House in central London. The building is planned to have the largest live newsroom in the world.

News output

Television news

Broadcasting House Broadcasting House The Television News section of BBC News is responsible for the main news bulletins on BBC One and BBC Two, news output on BBC Three and BBC Four and the news networks BBC News 24 and BBC Parliament. It also provides news on Ceefax and the BBC News Website. BBC News provides 22 hours of programming each day for the international news and current affairs channel BBC World. The distinctive music on all BBC television news programmes was introduced in 1999 and composed by David Lowe. It was part of the extensive rebranding which commenced in 1999. The general theme was used not only on bulletins on BBC One but News 24, BBC World and local news programmes in the BBC's Nations and Regions. Lowe was also responsible for the music on Radio One's "Newsbeat". In 2003, following another relaunch of the corporation's output, all title music and graphics were altered with Lowe remaining as composer. On the 8th November 2005, it was announced that a controller of BBC News 24 would be appointed and a single editor would be used rather than two individuals for the One O'Clock and Six O'Clock news programmes. For the full directory of all the BBC's regional news programmes, see here

Radio news

BBC Radio News produces bulletins for the BBC's national radio stations and provides content for local BBC radio stations via the General News Service (GNS). BBC News does not produce the BBC's regional news bulletins, which are produced by the BBC nations and regions. The BBC World Service broadcasts to some 150 million people in 40 languages across the globe.

Online news

:Main article: BBC News Online BBC News Online is the BBC's news [http://news.bbc.co.uk/ website]. Launched in November 1997, it is one of the most popular news websites in the UK with around 15 million visitors every month. The website contains exhaustive international news coverage as well as entertainment, sport, science, and political news. Many reports are accompanied by audio and video from the BBC's television and radio news services. Certain BBC current affairs programmes such as Newsnight and Question Time are available to view on the site after they have been broadcast. The same is available with BBC News television bulletins and radio programmes. Certain radio broadcasts are available for download as podcasts as part of the BBC's download trial.

Opinions of BBC News

The BBC is frequently complimented in the public arena, both in the United Kingdom and globally. Alternative views are also expressed in print from time to time. Notable examples have been [http://www.guardian.co.uk/Columnists/Column/0,,1530479,00.html Stop castrating the language], published in The Guardian, and [http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/003/005iqpvz.asp The Disgrace of the BBC], published in The Weekly Standard.

Censorship

BBC News has been banned in several countries primarily for unbiased reporting which has been unfavourable to the ruling government. Most notable examples have been in Uzbekistan [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/4407086.stm], China [http://www.asiamedia.ucla.edu/article.asp?parentid=21745] [http://www.chinaherald.net/2005/05/internet-google-web-accelerator-beats.html], Sri Lanka [http://www.tamilcanadian.com/eelam/hrights/html/article/SU001021131957N200.html], Zimbabwe [http://www.afrol.com/News2002/zim040_joytv_bbc.htm] and Pakistan in 2005 [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/4437494.stm], though the details of the last are still unclear.

Hutton Inquiry

BBC News was at the centre of one the largest political controversies in recent years. Three BBC News reports (Andrew Gilligan's on Today, Gavin Hewitt's on The Ten O'Clock News and another on Newsnight) quoted an anonymous source that stated the British government (particularly the Prime Minister's office) had embellished the September Dossier with misleading exaggerations of Iraq's weapons of mass destruction capabilities. The Government angrily denounced the reports and accused the corporation of poor journalism. In subsequent weeks the corporation stood by the report, saying that it had a reliable source. Following intense media speculation, David Kelly was finally named in the press as the source for Gilligan's story on 9 July 2003. Kelly was found dead, apparently by suicide, in a field close to his home early on 18 July. An inquiry led by Lord Hutton was announced by the British government the following day to investigate the circumstances leading to Kelly's death, concluding that "Dr. Kelly took his own life."

Aftermath of Hutton report

In his report on January 28 2004, Lord Hutton concluded that Gilligan's original accusation was "unfounded" and the BBC's editorial and management processes were "defective". In particular, it specifically criticised the chain of management that caused the BBC to defend its story. The BBC Director of News, Richard Sambrook, the report said, had accepted Gilligan's word that his story was accurate rather than checking Gilligan's records more thoroughly. Davies had then told the BBC Board of Governors that he was happy with the story and told the Prime Minister that a satisfactory internal inquiry had taken place. The Board of Governors, under BBC Chairman Gavyn Davies' guidance, accepted that further investigation of the Government's complaints were unnecessary. Due to the level of criticism of the corporation in the Hutton report, Davies resigned on the day of publication. BBC News faced an important test, reporting on itself with the publication of the report, but by common consent managed this both independently and impartially. Davies was followed by Director General Greg Dyke the following day and Gilligan on January 30. While doubtless a traumatic experience for the corporation, an ICM poll in April 2003 indicated that it had sustained its position as the best and most trusted provider of news.

Editors

- Political Editor: Nick Robinson
- World Affairs Editor: John Simpson
- Economics Editor: Evan Davis
- Business Editor: Jeff Randall
- Europe Editor: Mark Mardell
- Middle East Editor: Jeremy Bowen

References

- [http://news.bbc.co.uk/newswatch/ukfs/hi/about_bbc_news/ About BBC News]
- [http://news.bbc.co.uk/newswatch/ukfs/hi/default.stm Newswatch]

External links

- [http://news.bbc.co.uk/ BBC News]
- [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/tv_and_radio/4417472.stm BBC News Article on news output shake up]
- [http://news.bbc.co.uk/newswatch/ukfs/hi/newsid_4400000/newsid_4401700/4401767.stm Newswatch Questioning Zimbabwe's Banning of the BBC] Category:BBC Category:Television news ja:BBC NEWS-->

Image:BBC-newslogo.svg

BBC News logo

Helen Boaden

Helen Boaden is the current director of BBC News and Current Affairs. This role incorporates controlling all of the BBC's news output across all formats along with current affairs documentaries including programmes such as Newsnight and Panorama

Television Centre

BBC Television Centre (sometimes abbreviated TVC or TC) in London is home to the vast majority of BBC television output and, since 1998, almost all of the corporation's national TV and radio news output by BBC News. Opened in 1960, the building is four miles west of Central London at Shepherd's Bush. It was the world's first purpose built building for television production.

The building

Shepherd's Bush The building features a distinctive circular central block (often affectionately referred to as the concrete doughnut) around which are studios, offices, engineering areas and the new News Centre. In the centre of the main block is a statue of the Greek god of the sun, Helios, which is meant to symbolise the radiation of television light around the world. At the foot of this statue are two reclining figures, symbolising sound and vision, the components of television. Over time various extensions have been added to the building to maximise the site's potential. Increasingly the corporation has had to seek further accommodation elsewhere, such as the nearby BBC White City. This new complex comprises White City One, a 25,000 square metre office building, as well as the BBC's new Broadcast and Media Centres. The centre's studios range in size from 110 square metres (1074 ft²) to the vast Studio TC1 at 995 square metres (10,250 ft²). These have been home to some of the world's most famous TV programmes including Fawlty Towers, Monty Python's Flying Circus, Blue Peter, Absolutely Fabulous and Doctor Who. Since the early 1990s however the studios have been home to few dramas, as drama production moved almost entirely onto film or single-camera video, and Television Centre is a video-based, multi-camera production environment. In 2008 all BBC News, national radio and BBC World Service broadcasts will be moved to Broadcasting House in central London. The building is planned to have the largest live newsroom in the world. The BBC News Centre at Television Centre was only opened in 1998, in a new complex at the front of the building. The decision to move radio news to this building was attributed to Director General John Birt, a move that was resisted by the managing director of BBC Radio, Liz Forgan, who resigned after failing to dissuade the governors. The decision has caused problems for BBC Radio in particular, for example politicians accustomed to travelling to interviews at Broadcasting House have been reluctant to make the journey to White City.

History

On March 3 2001, a bomb located in a taxi exploded in front of Television Centre. 11 people were seriously injured in the blast. The attack was attributed to dissident Irish republicans. It was speculated at the time that the Panorama programme which named those suspected of involvement in the Omagh bombing was the motive for the attack. Today audience members are subject to airport style security, they have to walk through metal detectors, while bags and coats pass through an x-ray machine. x-ray machine Television Centre has suffered recently from power cuts, which due to the varied reasons are not seen as a systemic problem. On 20 June 2000 a power cut across West London forced many services off air, including the main network evening news. On 30 June 2001 powercuts again caused major breaks in output across all BBC services, with the added complication that a fire in backup generators caused the evacuation of the building. Just before 0800 GMT on 28 November 2003 an electrical fault caused some equipment to overheat which set off fire alarms. Although there was no fire the fault did cause widespread power cuts and prevented backup generators from providing alternative power. Again all output was affected with services transferred across London to alternative studios. For example, both the One O'Clock News and BBC News 24 broadcast for much of the day from the BBC's Millbank studios, and the morning radio shows the Today programme and Five Live's Breakfast fell off air for 15 minutes. This power cut came on the week prior to the relaunch of News 24, which was postponed for another week to ensure that all problems had been remedied. In the long term, the future of Television Centre as a BBC building is in question; Playout and transmission operations were moved out of the building in 2004 and 2005 to the new BBC Broadcast Centre at White City, News operations are due to move out in 2008 to Broadcasting House, Children's BBC and BBC Sport staff are expected to move to Manchester around 2010, and large numbers of office staff are expected to move to the new Media Village. As the studios are increasingly under-utilised it is quite possible that in 20 years time the BBC will have much less use for one of its most distinctive sites.

External links

- [http://www.bbc.co.uk/heritage/buildings/tv_centre.shtml History of the BBC: Television Centre]
- [http://www.bbc.co.uk/pressoffice/keyfacts/stories/television_centre.shtml BBC Press Office: Television Centre]
- [http://www.bbc.co.uk/tours/tvc.shtml Television Centre Backstage Tours] Category:BBC Category:Cultural and educational buildings in London

Millbank

Millbank is an area of London, England, that is east of Pimlico and south of Westminster. The area derives its name from a mill house belonging to nearby Westminster Abbey. By the 19th century the area was dominated by Millbank Prison used in the deportation of prisoners to the British colonies. Millbank is also the name of the main road (A3212) along the north bank of the river, extending northwards from Vauxhall Bridge Road to Abingdon Street, just south of Parliament Square. Many MPs' offices are based in buildings along this road, while the Tate Britain art gallery stands near the Vauxhall Bridge Rd end. The road was formed as part of the Thames Embankment in the mid 19th century and lies above a large interceptory sewer. Before the 1997 General Election, the Labour Party took over two floors of the Millbank Tower as its headquarters. The £1 million per annum rent forced the party to vacate the tower in 2001 for 16 Old Queen Street. In British politics the term Millbank Machine or Millbank Tendency was used to refer to those who were regarded by some as spin doctors. Millbank Studios, an independent broadcast services company, is based in the area, opposite the Houses of Parliament. It is here many major broadcasters base their coverage of Westminster including the BBC, Sky News and ITV companies. BBC Parliament, a channel dedicated to Parliamentary and general political coverage is run by Millbank Studios on behalf of the BBC. BBC Parliament Nearest tube:
- Westminster tube station
- Pimlico tube station
- Victoria station Category:Districts of London Category:Streets of London Category:Westminster

Westminster

Westminster is a district within the City of Westminster in London. It is the location of the Palace of Westminster and the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Westminster is situated south west of the City of London and half a mile (0.8 km) south west of Charing Cross.

History

The name was historically used to describe the area around Westminster Abbey – the West Minster, or church, that gave the area its name – which has been the seat of the government of England for more than nine hundred years. The name is also used for the larger City of Westminster which covers a wider geographical area and since 1965 has included Marylebone and Paddington. The historic core of Westminster is the former Thorney Island on which Westminster Abbey was built. The Abbey became the traditional venue of the coronation of the kings of England. The nearby Palace of Westminster came to be the principal royal residence after the Norman Conquest of England in 1066, and later housed the developing Parliament and law courts of England. Although the monarch had a strong presence in the City of London in the shape of the Tower of London, he did not actually live there (sensibly enough, given London's volatility and insanitary nature). London thus developed two distinct focal points – an economic one in the City of London and a political/cultural one in Westminster, where the Royal Court had its home. This division is still very apparent today. Tower of London The monarchy later moved to other palaces elsewhere in the city, and the law courts have since moved to the Royal Courts of Justice, close to the border of the City of London. The area is still the centre of government, with Parliament now located in the Palace of Westminster and most of the major Government ministries situated in Westminster, centred on Whitehall. "Westminster" is thus often used as shorthand for Parliament and the political community of the United Kingdom generally. The civil service is similarly referred to by the area it inhabits, Whitehall, where there was also once a royal palace. "Westminster" is consequently also used in reference to the Westminster System, the parliamentary model of democratic government that has evolved in the United Kingdom. The Westminster System is used with some adaptation in many other nations, particularly in the Commonwealth of Nations and other parts of the former British Empire. Close to the Palace of Westminster and Westminster Abbey is Westminster School, one of the major English public schools. Three of the four campuses of the University of Westminster are within the borough, although none in Westminster proper. The area has a substantial residential population, a surprisingly large proportion of which is a traditional London working-class community living in council and Peabody Trust estates at the back of Westminster Abbey and off Millbank. Category:Westminster Category:Districts of London ja:ウェストミンスター

BBC Radio

BBC Radio is a service of the British Broadcasting Corporation which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a Royal Charter since 1927. For a history of BBC radio prior to 1927 see British Broadcasting Company, Ltd.

Stations

National

The BBC today runs ten national domestic radio stations, five of which are only available in a digital format: via DAB (Digital Audio Broadcasting – i.e. Digital Radio), the Internet or the different forms of Digital Television in the UK. The five main stations are
- BBC Radio 1 - youth oriented, mostly contemporary pop music (including Top 40)
- BBC Radio 2 - adult oriented entertainment, wide range of music from adult contemporary to middle of the road, also talk, comedy plus specialist programming
- BBC Radio 3 - arts and high culture, special-interest music (classical, jazz, world music)
- BBC Radio 4 - current affairs, drama, comedy
- BBC Radio 5 Live - news, sports, talk The new digital-only stations are
- BBC 6 Music - rock, funk, punk and reggae
- BBC 7 - comedy, drama, books, science fiction, fantasy and children's programmes
- BBC Asian Network - aimed at the large South Asian community in the UK
- BBC 1Xtra - urban and black music
- BBC Five Live Sports Extra - a companion to 5 Live for additional events coverage

Regional

The BBC also runs regional radio stations throughout the UK, for example BBC Radio Wales and BBC Radio Devon. These stations focus on regional issues to a greater extent than their national counterparts, organising live phone-in debates about these issues, as well as lighter talk shows with music from different decades of the 20th Century. Compared to many advertising-funded Independent Local Radio (ILR) stations, which often broadcast contemporary popular music, BBC Local Radio stations offer a more "serious" alternative.

Broadcast

BBC Radio services are broadcast on various FM and AM frequencies, and also now on digital radio. They are also available on Digital Television sets in the UK, and for 7 days after broadcast on the bbc.co.uk website; a number of trials are also underway of MP3 downloads and podcasting for selected shows - see bbc.co.uk#Streaming media.

Programming

Among the most famous BBC Radio programmes is the serial The Archers, its comedy series The Goon Show and many original radio dramas.

History of BBC Radio

The BBC radio services began with the British Broadcasting Company, Ltd., which was licensed under pressure to provide a radio service for the British public. It was licensed by the British Government through its General Post Office which had original control of the airwaves because they had been interpreted under law as an extension of the Post Office services. Today radio broadcasting still makes up a large part of the corporation's output and this is still reflected in the title of the BBC's listings magazine called Radio Times. When the British Broadcasting Corporation gained control of the airwaves under the terms of a Crown Charter, John Reith was had been the founding Managing Director of the commercial company, became the first director and he brought with him draconian ideas that imposed a theocratic viewpoint on the broadcasting service. As a result of Reith's dictatorship which he expressed in his autobiography called Broadcast Over Britain that was published two years after BBC radio first went on the air; commercial competition opened up.

Competition from 10 stations

The commercial competitors were for the most part represented by the International Broadcasting Company that bought blocks of airtime on transmitters based in Europe outside of the British Isles. In the period from 1927 to 1939, light entertainment on the British airwaves was for the most part the domain of the 10 part-time English language IBC stations. By 1938 on Sundays upwards of 80% of the British audience turned their dials away from the BBC to these IBC stations which followed an American format of commercial broadcasting. They were eventually silenced by the advent of the German military taking control of their transmitters in France, Luxembourg and other countries during World War II.

American Armed Forces influence

The respite from American influence on British broadcasting was short lived. When the US military flooded Europe with troops during World War II, American-style programming followed and the BBC was forced to transmit these shows. After the war the BBC Forces transmitters that had carried these shows were transformed into a network called the BBC Light Programme. The original BBC stations which had been linked together to form the BBC National Programme were transfomed into the BBC Home Service. A third part-time service was created under the name of the BBC Third Programme. For the history of these stations see the timeline link below. Another operation had originally been called the General Overseas Service, but it served a different purpose from the domestic stations. It later became known as the BBC World Service and it was formed at the behest of the British Foreign Office.

Commercial radio influence

WWII silenced all but one of the original IBC stations and Radio Luxembourg continued its nightly tranmsissions to Britain as a commercial radio station featuring American-style entertainment and religion. Beginning in 1964 the first in what became a fleet of 10 offshore pirate radio stations began to ring the British coastline. By 1967 millions were tuning into these commercial operations and the BBC was rapidly losing its radio listening audience. The British Government reacted by imposing a draconian censorship law which all but wiped out all of the stations by midnight on August 14, 1967. One of the stations called Wonderful Radio London ("Big L") was so successful that the BBC was told to copy it as best they could. The creator of BBC Radio One told the press that his family had been fans of that station. The BBC hired many out-of-work broadcasting staff who had come from the former offshore stations, including Tony Blackburn who presented the very first BBC Radio One morning show. He had previously presented the same morning show on Radio Caroline and Tony Blackburn attempted to duplicate the same sound for BBC Radio One. Among the other djs hired was the late John Peel who had presented the overnight show on "Big L". That station's PAMS jingles were commissioned to be resung in Dallas, Texas so that "Wonderful Radio London" became "Wonderful Radio One on BBC".

New BBC networks

BBC Radio 1 was launched as a part-time pop music station September 30, 1967. The BBC Light Programme was renamed Radio 2 and broadcast easy listening, folk, jazz and light entertainment. The BBC Third Programme was renamed Radio 3 and the BBC Home Service became Radio 4. BBC Radio 5 was launched on 27 August 1990 as a home for sport and children's programming, and was it later renamed BBC Radio Five Live when it became a dedicated news and sport network.

External Links

:
- [http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio/aod/mainframe.shtml] - BCC Radio online streams (All services including DAB)
-

Central London

Central London is a much-used but unofficial and vaguely defined term for the most inner part of London, the capital of the United Kingdom. There are many definitions and each has its own notional boundary. Some are defined by clear boundaries, others less so. All definitions have in common the notion that central London is smaller than, and a subset of, Inner London.

Pattern of settlement

Inner London As a starting point in considering what "central London" means, it is important to recognise that London does not consist of a small high rise core surrounded by a belt of very low density districts. The situation is more complex. The section of London which is of an urban as opposed to a suburban character is very extensive, encompassing most of the districts built before 1914. Up to this point most London housing, including most of that in the most expensive districts, was terraced. Low density suburbs were first built in the early 19th century, but did not become prevalent for another hundred years after that. In the 20th century, and especially in the decades after the Second World War, the size of the fashionable central area of London shrank considerably as the old aristocratic London elite faded away and many members of the middle classes decided that life close to the city centre was no longer appealing. At that time government planners often had a negative view of urban life as well, and a large amount of housing in central London was destroyed in the Second World War. Thus many members of the working class were encouraged to move out of the city centre as well, either to suburban developments around London or to new towns further afield.

Changing definition

Introduction of postal districts

In 1858 London was divided in postal districts in order to aid the forwarding of mail items. The two most central districts were "EC" - East Central which broadly covered the City of London and "WC" - West Central which coved the area immediately west of there as far as Charing Cross Road and Tottenham Court Road.

Coming of the railways

When the railways were first constructed in London during the latter 1800s an area of central London was defined by government and railway lines were not permitted to pass beyond it, at least not above ground. The restrictions were relaxed a little and the new, more central, terminals were constructed at Waterloo (replacing Nine Elms), Fenchurch Street (Minories) and Liverpool Street (Bishopsgate). This created the ring of terminal stations which still exists today. The railways were thus instrumental in both enabling the rapid expansion of London and also helped to reinforce the boundary of the central area.

Modern times

In the 1970s the population of Greater London was at its lowest level since the 1920s, and "central London" might have included:
- City of London
- City of Westminster
- Most of Kensington and Chelsea
- The section of Camden south of the Euston Road
- The section of Islington south of Pentonville Road and City Road These five districts all contain dense concentrations of characteristically metropolitan activities: major corporate offices; government buildings; universities; department stores; museums and so on. They also have a large amount of housing, most of that in the private sector being among the most expensive in the world. Since 1970s there has been a long term trend for the number of districts in London which can credibly be considered part of "central London" to increase. Some non-residential land uses in London, such as offices and hotels, have become more widely distributed, but these new candidate districts for "central London" status tend to be more residential than the core districts listed above.

Gentrification

The expansion of "central London" is strongly associated with gentrification as swathes of Victorian London which became shabby in the post-war decades are revived by well-to-do buyers. Thus there are a great many districts which are considered central by some, especially by their own middle class residents, but not necessarily accepted as such by everyone else. Areas which have passed through this "centralisation" include Fulham in the 1980s, Camden Town in the 1990s, Shoreditch more recently, and many others.

South Bank and its environs

Shoreditch London began on the north bank of the Thames, and its centre of gravity is still strongly on that side of the river, but a wide range of major buildings and facilities have been built south of the river in recent decades. The South Bank and Bankside areas are now generally accepted as being part of "central London", and some people would include other districts on this side of the river as well.

The East End

Although much of the East End of London is completely urban in character, compared to the West End of London it has historically been the poorer side of the city with the focus of the metropolis more westward, thus it was not considered part of central London. With extensive redevelopment, social change and rising land values this contrast has been reduced. Further east a new financial district has been created at Canary Wharf, and the surrounding area increasingly has an urban and "central" nature. However this newly developed district is isolated from the core central districts. Both the East End and Canary Wharf could be considered by some to be part of central London.

Inner suburbs

To the west and north west of the core districts listed above there is a ring of fashionable mainly Victorian and primarily residential districts around all four sides of Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens, such as Holland Park and Notting Hill. Some people consider all of these districts to be part of "central London". Similar claims would also be made by many for the fashionable north western districts as far out as Hampstead.

Central London and Inner London

Hampstead Inner London is a defined term meaning that part of Greater London which was part of the County of London and by definition includes all of central London. Use of Inner London in some contexts can carry negative connotations and be used only to describe those inner-city areas affected by poverty, crime, and social problems while central London carries more prestigious connotations and is used in terms of business, entertainment, tourism and desirable housing. In this context it is suggested that central London is surrounded by inner London and not part of it. It is important to note that unlike in some major cities in the United States and elsewhere, these two faces of urban life are intermingled. There is social housing in almost all of the prestigious central London districts, even Mayfair, and nowadays expensive private housing is often built in poor neighbourhoods where most of the existing occupants live in social housing without these poorer occupants being moved elsewhere. All sorts of people live cheek by jowl in London, though often without having much contact with people outside of their own group.

Other definitions

Maps

The Geographer's A-Z Street Atlas and other map sources often include a section covering central London at an increased scale. The area chosen as central may vary. Geographer's A-Z Street Atlas Geographer's A-Z Street Atlas

Transport

- The area inside the Circle Line of the London Underground. This is a fairly wide definition in the western areas, but entirely ignores any districts south of the Thames and the recent expansion of central activities to part of the East End of London, with the development of Docklands. Thus it is probably not used as much as it was some years ago.
- Travelcard Zone 1 in the public transport system, which is a little more generous, taking in some areas to the south of the Thames
- Central London 'Journey Planner' maps in tube carriages show a varying area as central.
- The congestion charging zone.

Postal districts

congestion charging The East Central and West Central postal district created in 1858 which were further divided in 1917 into the modern EC1, EC2, EC3, EC4, WC1 and WC2 London postal districts. These do not reflect changes in perceptions which have occurred since then, and they were perhaps not intended to define "Central London" for general purposes even then. An area closer to a typical modern definition of Central London can be arrived at by combining the aforementioned districts with the head districts of the other sectors e.g. SE1, SW1 etc.

Parlance

One way of identifying which areas are central is the language used to describe them by Londoners. When describing non-central areas the relevant place name is used. When the central area is being referred to it is most commonly called 'The City' for the City of London and 'Town', 'West End' or 'West' for the central shopping, entertainment and business districts outside the City. One might be 'going up to Town' if shopping on Oxford Street or Bond Street but not if shopping on the Kings Road.

Central activities zone

The Central Activities Zone (CAZ): This is a term used in the London Plan. It covers only those areas with a very high concentration of metropolitan activities. This results in a small and extremely irregularly shaped area.

Charing Cross

In order to calculate distances from London the most central point is taken as Charing Cross and in this way can be taken as the most central location and all things in a given radius from there considered central.

London Boroughs

With the exception of the "square mile" of the City of London, the London boroughs all include some districts which would not be considered to be part of "central London" at least by some of the stricter definitions. London boroughs can be defined in terms of 'inner' or 'outer' London, but cannot be defined as central or otherwise.

Summary of districts

The City of London is taken as being entirely and undisputedly central. Here follows some districts which are also commonly thought of as central and some fringe cases that are sometimes considered so.

External links

- [http://www.multimap.com/map/browse.cgi?client=public&X=530000&Y=180000&width=500&height=300&gride=&gridn=&srec=0&coordsys=gb&db=&addr1=&addr2=&addr3=&pc=&advanced=&local=&localinfosel=&kw=&inmap=&table=&ovtype=&zm=0&scale=200000&multimap.x=279&multimap.y=135 A map of London] - the scale has been selected for convenience only and the map edges do not correspond with any definition of central London. By some definitions central London extends beyond the edges of this map, especially to the east, where Canary Wharf is off the map. The black and white square just above centre is at Charing Cross. Category:Geography of London

Hutton Report

The Hutton Inquiry was a British judicial inquiry chaired by Lord Hutton, appointed by the United Kingdom Labour government to investigate the death of a government weapons expert, Dr David Kelly. The inquiry opened in August 2003 and reported on January 28, 2004. Its terms of reference were to "urgently [...] conduct an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the death of Dr. Kelly". In his report, Hutton began by saying that he was "satisfied that Dr Kelly took his own life". He then concluded that the British Broadcasting Corporation's allegations that the government had knowingly "sexed up" a report into Iraq's weapons of mass destruction — the "September Dossier" — were unfounded. The inquiry's findings prompted the immediate resignation of the BBC's chairman, Gavyn Davies, its Director General (chief executive) Greg Dyke, and the journalist at the centre of the allegations, Andrew Gilligan. Lord Hutton retired as a Law Lord following the report's publication.

Background

Law Lord, leaked information on Iraq's Weapons of Mass Destruction to a journalist. His death precipitated the scandal.]] Kelly had been the source for reports made by three BBC journalists that the Government, particularly the press office of Tony Blair, the Prime Minister, had knowingly embellished the dossier with misleading exaggerations of Iraq's military capabilities. These were reported by Andrew Gilligan on BBC Radio 4's Today programme on May 29 2003, by Gavin Hewitt on the Ten O'Clock News the same day and by Susan Watts on BBC Two's Newsnight on June 2. On June 1 Gilligan repeated his allegations in an article written for the Mail on Sunday, naming government press secretary Alastair Campbell as the driving force for alteration of the dossier. The Government angrily denounced the reports and accused the corporation of poor journalism. In subsequent weeks the corporation stood by the report, saying that it had a reliable source. Following intense media speculation, Kelly was finally named in the press as the source for Gilligan's story on July 9. Kelly apparently committed suicide in a field close to his home on July 17 (although this will not be officially confirmed until a coroner's report is released). An inquiry was announced by the British government the following day. The inquiry was to investigate whether the Government had indeed "sexed-up" the report or, if not, uncover why it had been claimed that it did.

The inquiry

July 17 The inquiry opened on August 1. Hearings began on August 11. The first phase of the inquiry closed on September 4. A second session of witness-calling began on Monday September 15, where some witnesses from the first session, such as Andrew Gilligan, Defence Secretary Geoff Hoon, BBC chairman Gavyn Davies and Alastair Campbell were recalled for further questions arising from the first phase, and some witnesses were called for the first time. The taking of evidence closed on Wednesday September 24. The inquiry heard evidence on 22 days, lasting 110 hours, from 74 witnesses. Examination and cross-examination came from five Queen's Counsels, representing the Inquiry, the Government, the BBC, the Kelly family and Andrew Gilligan.

The report

Hutton initially announced that he expected to be able to deliver his report in late November or early December. The report was eventually published on January 28, 2004. It ran to 750 pages in 13 chapters and 18 appendices, though this was mainly comprised of excerpts from the hundreds of documents (letters, emails, transcripts of conversation, and so on) that were published during the inquiry. The main conclusions were:
- Hutton was "satisfied that Dr. Kelly took his own life"
- There was "no underhand [government] strategy" to name him as the source for the BBC's accusations
- Gilligan's original accusation was "unfounded" and the BBC's editorial and management processes were "defective"
- The dossier had not been "sexed up", but was in line with available intelligence, although the Joint Intelligence Committee, chaired by John Scarlett, may have been "subconsciously influenced" by the government
- The Ministry of Defence (MOD) was at fault for not informing Kelly of their strategy that would involve naming him The report exonerated the Government much more completely than had been expected by many observers prior to its publication. Evidence presented to the inquiry had indicated: John Scarlett
- That the wording of the dossier had been altered to present the strongest possible case for war within the bounds of available intelligence
- That some of these changes had been suggested by Alastair Campbell
- That reservations had been expressed by experts within the Intelligence Community about the wording of the dossier
- That David Kelly had direct contact with the dissenters within the Defence Intelligence Staff and had communicated their reservations (and his own) to several journalists.
- That, following Kelly's decision to come forward as one of Gilligan's contacts, Alastair Campbell and Geoff Hoon had wanted his identity made public
- That the Prime Minister himself had chaired a meeting at which it was decided that Dr Kelly's name would be confirmed by the Ministry of Defence if put to them by journalists
- That Kelly's name had been confirmed after journalists had made multiple suggestions to the MOD press office. Despite this evidence the government was largely cleared of any wrongdoing by Hutton. In large measure this was because evidence to the Inquiry indicated that the government had not known of the reservations in the intelligence community: it seemed they had been discounted by senior intelligence assessors (the Joint Intelligence Committee) — thus Gilligan's claim that the government "probably knew" the intelligence was flawed, was itself unfounded. Furthermore, the Inquiry had heard that these were not the words used by Gilligan's source, but his own inference. Meanwhile, Hutton determined that any failure of intelligence assessment fell outside his remit, and the Intelligence Services thus also escaped censure. Instead the report placed a great deal of emphasis on evidence of the failings of Gilligan and the BBC, many of which had been explicitly acknowledged during the course of the Inquiry. In particular, it specifically criticised the chain of management that caused the BBC to defend its story. The BBC management, the report said, had accepted Gilligan's word that his story was accurate, instead of checking Gilligan's records more thoroughly. Davies had then told the BBC Board of Governors that he was happy with the story, and told the Prime Minister that a satisfactory internal inquiry had taken place. The Board of Governors, under Davies' guidance, accepted that further investigation of the Government's complaints were unnecessary. In his report Hutton wrote of this: :The Governors should have recognised more fully than they did that their duty to protect the independence of the BBC was not incompatible with giving proper consideration to whether there was validity in the Government's complaints, no matter how strongly worded by Mr Campbell, that the allegations against its integrity reported in Mr Gilligan's broadcasts were unfounded and the Governors failed to give this issue proper consideration. There was considerable speculation in the media that the report had been deliberately written to clear the government, a claim disputed by Lord Hutton at a later press conference. Many people remain convinced that this was the case. Suggestions of whitewash were supported by Hutton's careful choice of language at certain points in the report. For example, he argued that the use of the phrase 'sexed up' by Gilligan would have been taken by the general public to indicate an outright lie rather than mere exaggeration, and thus the claim was untrue.

Immediate aftermath of publication

It was because of the report's criticism of his actions that Davies resigned on the day of publication, January 28. Reporters from rival news organisation ITN described the day of publication as "one of the worst in the BBC's history". Greg Dyke resigned two days after the publication of the report, following a meeting of BBC Governors where it is reported he only retained the support of one third of the board. However, after announcing his resignation, Dyke stated: :I do not necessarily accept the findings of Lord Hutton. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/politics/3441181.stm] Andrew Gilligan resigned because of his part in the affair on January 30, making three BBC resignations in three days. However, in his resignation statement he questioned the value of Hutton's report: :This report casts a chill over all journalism, not just the BBC's. It seeks to hold reporters, with all the difficulties they face, to a standard that it does not appear to demand of, for instance, Government dossiers. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/3446443.stm]

January 30	January 30	January 30
Gavyn Davies	Greg Dyke	Andrew Gilligan

Blair, who had been repeatedly under fire for the "sexing-up" allegations, told the House of Commons in the debate following the release of the report that he had been completely exonerated. He demanded a retraction from those who had accused him of lying to the House, particularly Michael Howard, the Leader of the Opposition: :The allegation that I or anyone else lied to this House or deliberately misled the country by falsifying intelligence on WMD is itself the real lie. And I simply ask that those that made it and those who have repeated it over all these months, now withdraw it, fully, openly and clearly. [http://www.number-10.gov.uk/output/Page5256.asp] Howard sidestepped the demand for an apology. However, immediately after the Board of Governors had accepted Dyke's resignation Lord Ryder, as Acting Chairman of the BBC (Davis's replacement), apologised "unreservedly" for errors made during the Dr David Kelly affair. Dyke, who has not given the conclusions of the Hutton report his full backing, said that he "could not quite work out" what the BBC was apologising for. The Independent subsequently reported that the BBC governors had ignored the advice of BBC lawyers that the Hutton report was "legally flawed", although this was denied by the BBC. Deliberately or otherwise, Dr. Kelly had raised wider questions about the quality, interpretation and presentation of intelligence that Hutton had left unanswered. Some of these were to be addressed in a new inquiry, announced by the government on February 3 2004. At the end of the report Hutton recalled how the final part of David Kelly's life had not been representative of his whole career in the civil service: :The evidence at this Inquiry has concentrated largely on the last two months of Dr Kelly's life, and therefore it is fitting that I should end this report with some words written in Dr Kelly's obituary in The Independent on 31 July by Mr Terence Taylor, the President and Executive Director of the International Institute of Strategic Studies, Washington DC and a former colleague of Dr Kelly: "It is most important that the extraordinary public attention and political fallout arising from the events of the past month do not mask the extraordinary achievements of a scientist who loyally served not only his Government but also the international community at large."

Leaking of the report prior to publication

The report was leaked by an unknown party to The Sun the night before the official publication date. The Sun and consequently most other newspapers in their later editions ran with the leaked version of the report. Delivered by an unnamed source over the telephone to Sun Political Editor Trevor Kavanagh, the leaked version accurately described the report's main findings. All sides involved in the Inquiry denounced the leak. Lord Hutton launched a further inquiry into how the report came to be leaked. This second inquiry, carried out by a solicitor, reported on 11 August 2004, but failed to find the source of the leak. It also said there were "no particular weaknesses" in the security of the report and so offered no suggestions of how a similar leak might be prevented in the future.

Media reaction to the report

Several national newspapers judged the report to be so uncritical of the Government that they accused Hutton of participating in an "establishment whitewash". The right-wing Daily Mail wrote in its editorial "We're faced with the wretched spectacle of the BBC chairman resigning while Alastair Campbell crows from the summit of his dunghill. Does this verdict, my lord, serve the real interest of truth?". The Independent included a large, mostly empty, white space above the fold on its front page containing just the word "whitewash?" in small red type. The Daily Express headline read "Hutton's whitewash leaves questions unanswered" — referring to the fact that an investigation into Britain's reasons for joining the war in Iraq was beyond the scope of the inquiry. None of the newspapers presented evidence of a cover-up, but they questioned whether the conclusions were supported by the evidence. Other newspapers such as The Times, The Sun (both owned by News Corporation and usually critical of the BBC) and The Daily Telegraph concentrated on the behaviour of the BBC criticised in the report and called for Greg Dyke to resign, as he did later that day (January 29). The Sunday Times depicted Lord Hutton as the Three Wise Monkeys who would 'see no evil, hear no evil and speak no evil'. In assessing the media response to the Hutton report, it needs to be remembered that most British newspapers are highly partisan in their editorial policies. The reactions of papers supportive of the Conservative Party, such as The Daily Mail and The Daily Telegraph, in part reflected the Conservatives' disappointment that the report did not find that Blair had misled the House of Commons or the public, which might have precipitated his resignation. On the other hand, left-wing newspapers such as The Guardian and The Daily Mirror, while supporting Blair against the Conservatives, strongly opposed British participation in the war in Iraq, and sympathised with what they (and many others) saw as the anti-war stance of BBC journalists such as Gilligan. While they probably did not want Blair forced from office, they would have welcomed a finding that Alastair Campbell had falsified the September Dossier. As Martin Kettle wrote in The Guardian on February 3: "Too many newspapers invested too heavily in a particular preferred outcome on these key points. They wanted the government found guilty on the dossier and on the naming, and they wanted Gilligan's reporting vindicated. When Hutton drew opposite conclusions, they damned his findings as perverse and his report as a whitewash. But the report's weakness was its narrowness, and to some extent its unworldliness, not the accuracy of its verdicts." Thousands of BBC workers paid for a full-page advertisement in The Daily Telegraph on January 31 in order to publish a message of support for Dyke, followed by a list of their names. The message read: :The following statement is from BBC employees, presenters, reporters and contributors. It was paid for by them personally, not the BBC itself. :Greg Dyke stood for brave, independent BBC journalism that was fearless in its search for the truth. We are resolute that the BBC should not step back from its determination to investigate the facts in pursuit of the truth. Through his passion and integrity Greg Dyke inspired us to make programmes of the highest quality and creativity. We are dismayed by Greg's departure, but we are determined to maintain his achievements and his vision for an independent organisation that serves the public above all else. An ICM public opinion poll, commissioned by the News of the World and published on February 1 2004, showed that 54% of respondents believed Tony Blair's reputation had deteriorated. Only 14% thought his status had improved after being vindicated in the report. In some countries the reputation of the BBC in fact improved as a result of its attacks on the British government during the Dr David Kelly affair. The BBC is sometimes viewed, especially outside the UK, as a puppet of the government. The BBC's willingness to accuse the Prime Minister and the Ministry of Defence so publicly of wrongdoing, despite the mistakes the BBC itself acknowledged it had made, boosted its credentials as an impartial and unbiased news source. Hutton himself defended the report, speaking before a Commons select committee on May 14 2004. He stated he had not thought it appropriate to embark on a study of the pre-war intelligence: "I had to draw the line somewhere." He felt the allegations against Gilligan were "far graver" than questions concerning the quality of the intelligence, and that it was right that a separate inquiry, the Butler Review, was being conducted. [http://www.guardian.co.uk/Politics/kelly/story/0,13747,1215907,00.html]

Sky News

Sky News is Europe's first 24-hour television news channel, originally launched as part of the 4-channel Sky Television satellite package in February 1989. Its main competitors in the UK are BBC News 24 and the ITV News Channel, while elsewhere in Europe it competes mainly with BBC World, Euronews and CNN International. Sky News is available via satellite in Africa, the Middle East, and parts of Asia and Oceania. The station broadcasts from Osterley, West London. Sky News currently employs around 50 on-screen staff: anchors, weather forecasters, correspondents and reporters, and over 500 behind-the-scenes workers. The station has 7 bureaux outside the United Kingdom & Ireland: Brussels, New Delhi, Johannesburg, Jerusalem, Moscow, Beijing and Washington, D.C. (although partnerships with other News Corporation-owned news outlets greatly increase this list)

History

The channel originally operated on a shoestring but quickly gained a reputation for journalistic integrity. Although the channel was reportedly run at a loss until 2002 [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/tv_and_radio/1742197.stm] its award-winning journalism has brought Sky Television and its successor British Sky Broadcasting some much-needed prestige. Whilst it is fashionable for many of the newcomers to the news channel market to rapidly hire-and-fire presenters, Sky News is unique in that many of the original presenting team from the 1980s launch remain at the channel. However, one of its longest standing presenters, Bob Friend MBE, retired in late 2003. Sky News was the only UK 24 hour news service until the launch of BBC News 24 in November 1997, followed by the ITN News Channel (now ITV News Channel) in August 2000. In September 1999 the European Commission ruled against a complaint by Sky News which argued that the publicly funded BBC News 24 was unfair and illegal under EU law. The EC ruled that the BBC licence fee should be considered state aid but that such aid was justified due to the public service remit of the BBC and that it did not exceed actual costs of the channel. In March 2000 Sky News Active was launched, a 24-hour service providing headlines (and other services) on demand. It proved popular, and in late 2001/early 2002 it launched a 8-screen video news service, rather then just 4-screen. Sky News Poll, had also proved popular with a new question each day. In March 2004 it was announced that Sky News had won a 5-year contract to supply news bulletins to the British terrestrial channel five, taking over from ITN in January 2005. On October 24 2005, Sky News was relaunched from a brand-new studio in a new building at Osterley, West London. This replaced the building at Isleworth which had been in use for almost 17 years since the channel's launch. Music and on screen graphics were heavily revised and for the first time in the channel's history it began broadcasting in Widescreen (16:9) format. The new schedule includes more programmes based around news presenters such as Jeremy Thompson, while still breaking news around the clock. In this, Sky News would be following the example of CNN and Fox News in the United States. Former US State Department Spokesperson James Rubin has also signed with Sky News to present an hour-long evening news show. He is married to CNN's Christiane Amanpour. Sky News has been featured in many blockbuster feature films including 20th Century Fox releases; Independence Day, Mission: Impossible, Behind Enemy Lines, Shaun of the Dead and The Day After Tomorrow. 20th Century Fox is another News Corp. asset.

Programming

News Corp. This is the weekday programme schedule as of October 24 2005:
- 6.00am - Sunrise with Eamonn Holmes and Lorna Dunkley.
- 9.00am - Sky News Today with live breaking news as it develops.
- 12.00pm - Lunchtime Live with Kay Burley taking a comprehensive look at the day's news with human interest stories.
- 2.00pm - Sky News Today
- 5.00pm - Live at Five, a fast-paced look at the day's top stories with Jeremy Thompson.
- 6.30pm - Sportsline
-
- 7.00pm - The Sky Report with Julie Etchingham, a hard-hitting news analysis show.
- 8.00pm - World News Tonight, presented by James Rubin, taking a look at the news from an international perspective.
- 9.00pm - Sky News Tonight
- 10.00pm - Sky News at Ten is a round-up of the day's top stories, with Chris Roberts and Gillian Joseph.
-
- 10.30pm - Sportsline
- 11.00pm - Sky News Tonight takes a look at tomorrow's top stories. Other programmes include Saturday Live with Martin Stanford which mixes news and sport with showbiz and technology, and Sunday Live with Adam Boulton, an in-depth look at world of politics from the heart of Westminster. Shows marked with
- are replaced with Sky News Ireland on Irish cable and satellite systems.

Perception

Today Sky News continues to maintain an impressive standard of journalism in the face of tough competition. It is somewhat different to stablemate Fox News, the US sister channel with which it sometimes exchanges material. Sky News at the moment relies more on news rather than Fox News' anchor-based commentary, such as that provided by Bill O'Reilly. During 2003, plans to offer Sky News in the US were under consideration, but have since been dropped allegedly due to pressure from Fox News. 2003The station has not been without controversy. In early 1994 Kelvin Mackenzie, former editor of the Sun newspaper, was appointed Managing Director of BSkyB. MacKenzie's proposed changes to Sky News lead to clashes with CEO Sam Chisholm and the head of Sky News, Ian Frykberg, who protested what they saw as an attempt to take its news values downmarket and concentrate on stories that would be more familiar to tabloid newspapers than its rivals at the BBC and ITN. The main problems arose when it became clear that Frykberg, then head of News and Sport at BSkyB, wanted to take Sky News to a wider international audience. Frykberg outlined his intention to open 15 new Sky News bureaux around the world and make the channel a serious alternative to CNN. At the time, he was backed by Rupert Murdoch
- [http://www.iht.com/articles/1994/03/12/tvwars.php]. There was also talk of the US CBS network acquiring a stake in Sky News, and the two launching a joint international news channel. Mackenzie, in contrast, wanted the channel to focus on more domestic and 'tabloid' stories. The most ferocious battle occurred when Mackenzie wanted Sky News to run an interview with Lady Bienvenida Buck, exposed by the News of the World as being the mistress of Chief of Defence staff Sir Peter Harding. Frykberg refused to air the interview and resigned shortly afterwards. The interview did not air on Sky News, and was instead shifted to Sky One. MacKenzie announced his resignation in August 1994. A 1993 report on public trust in news outlets ranked Sky News far below the more established TV networks and newspapers. However the station has undoubtedly got past this in its news coverage, to the point of being nominated for International Emmy Awards and a 2004 report listed Sky as second only to the BBC in terms of public trust in British news outlets. Its coverage of the Louise Woodward trial in Boston, US, garnered the channel international attention. Capitalising on the live broadcasts from the courtroom, Sky News covered the trial as-it-happened, with constant live coverage. After days of live courtroom television, Sky attempted to return to a more regular schedule, only to be inundated with complaints by viewers demanding that the trial return to the screens; Sky obliged. They also took the opportunity to rig up a huge television screen in a pub in Woodward's home village of Elton in Cheshire, with 24/7 coverage of the trial in progress. Villagers rallied round the screen, and Sky recorded their reactions to every detail of the trial. The channel came in for further criticism, with many accusing it of maintaining a pro-Louise Woodward stance, even after she was found guilty. At the turn of the millennium, Sky began a process of expanding its international coverage, opening more overseas bureaux in Africa, Europe, the far East, and so on. Its coverage of the war in Kosovo eclipsed long-standing rivals at CNN and the BBC, both of whom could only just muster telephone reports, whilst Sky had live reporters in-vision across the region; for that, it won awards from the Royal Television Society and BAFTA, as well as a nomination for an International Emmy Award. Its coverage of the September 11, 2001 attacks brought more honours, and more recognition from BAFTA and the RTS. During the first week or so of the invasion of Afghanistan, Its US sister station Fox News substituted its late-night repeats of its own programming with a simulcast of Sky News. In 2002/3, its coverage of the Soham Murders in Cambridgeshire gave the channel yet more awards, and the British Academy award for news coverage. Later that year, its (also award-winning) coverage of the Iraq conflict saw it yet again steal a march on its rivals, with US networks CBS and Fox News carrying much of its coverage.

Reception

Sky News is free-to-air on the satellites carrying the Sky Digital platform, but an international version - the UK feed, minus advertisements, the clock and the scrolling headlines banner, is free-to-air on Astra 1E at 19.2E. It is also carried encrypted on a number of satellites for international reception - including but not limited to Hotbird, Nilesat, Amos 1 and Intelsat 10-02. It is also usually carried on cable systems in Europe, particularly (but not only) in Northern Europe.

Related channels

As well as the original UK version, there are a growing number of other "Sky News" channels, and additional News Corporation news channels. They share content and expertise, but differ in focus and presentation.
- Sky News Australia
The first Sky News deriviate was Sky News Australia, launched on February 19 1996 as a joint venture between BSkyB, Publishing and Broadcasting Limited and the Seven Network. This channel makes heavy use of Sky News UK material. The UK version in its entirety is also available in Australia, but only in a low bitrate form.
- Granada Talk TV
Granada Talk TV launched on October 1 1996 as part of the Granada Sky Broadcasting joint venture between BSkyB and Granada. It was a partial-day UK opinion focused current affairs channel. It ceased transmission in August 1997.
- Fox News Channel
Sky News' "sister channel" in the United States is Fox News Channel, launched on October 7, 1996. Fox and Sky use each others correspondents, studios and footage but there is a gulf in editorial stances of the two channels. Following Sky News' successful coverage of the 2003 Iraq War, some of which was broadcast on Fox News, there was a proposal to launch a Sky News US. This never happened, possibly due to sharp increases in ratings for FOX News.
- Sky Scottish
Sky Scottish launched on November 1 1996 as a joint venture between BSkyB and Scottish Media Group. It was partial-day Sky UK channel with a focus on Scottish news and sport. It ceased transmission in June 1998.
- STAR News
Hindi news channel STAR News was launched in 1998 on Asia's STAR TV platform. It is another News Corp channel that owes much in terms of style and presentation to Sky News.
- Sky News Australia New Zealand
New Zealand's Sky News Australia New Zealand launched in 2001. Initially, only local news bulletins differentiated it from Sky News Australia, but its level of local programming has now increased. Some of this programming is also broadcast on Sky News Australia.
- Sky TG24
Sky TG24, known to some English speakers as "Sky News Italia" launched on August 23 2003. However this Italian language channel has little in common with Sky News UK.
- Sky News Ireland
Sky News Ireland began in May 2004. This differs from Sky News UK only in that it includes two local halfhour weekdaily programmes, and a weekly summary programme. The standard UK Sky News channel is also available in a number of other countries; it is occasionally shown in hotels and is offered by some cable systems as part of their English-language line-up. The key differences between this overseas version and the UK version are the omission of the current time on the screen (reflecting that the channel may be shown outside of its normal GMT/BST time zone), and the absence of advertisements. In the space of the advertisement breaks are written summaries of news, business & sports headlines, accompanied by different mixes of the normal Sky News theme music.

External links

- [http://www.sky.com/skynews/home Sky News Homepage]
- [http://www.skypressoffice.co.uk/SkyNews/default.asp Sky Press Office for Sky News]
- [http://www.skynewsgreenroom.co.uk/skynewsgreenroom/default.asp Sky News official "Behind-the-scenes" site]
- Digital Spy -[http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/article/ds25032.html Sky News revamp set for October 24]
- BBC - [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/tv_and_radio/3546373.stm Five to take Sky News bulletins] Category:24-hour television news channels Category:BSkyB television channels

Iraq War

:For other uses, see Iraq war (disambiguation) The Iraq war or war in Iraq^, is both an informal and formal term for military conflicts in Iraq that began with the invasion of 2003 by the multinational coalition of American, British, and other forces. The term "Iraq War" has typically refered to the large-scale military hostilities against the Saddam Hussein government of Iraq. This conflict has also been called "The Second Gulf War" and "Gulf War II".

Terminology

Variance in the use of the 'Iraq war' term can be traced to basic differences in the operative definition for 'war' and 'occupation'; as well as the understanding of 'political authority' and 'sovereignty'. For instance, the United States never actually declared war on Iraq (which could only be done by Congress; the last time that Congress made a formal declaration of war was for World War II). However, Iraq was invaded by U.S. military forces. The term Iraq war, is often left uncapitalized to indicate the legal informality and the lack of clarity in distinguishing among various operations and violent episodes. Further definition of the term varies with usage and point of view, hence, depending on the context, the term 'Iraq War' or 'Iraq war' may refer to hostilities in Iraq that fit one of two general contexts: When capitalized, the term Iraq War typically is limited to the 2003 invasion, the hostilities against the Baathist government of Iraq, and the succeeding period of military occupation. The Iraq War in this sense began with the 2003 invasion and ended with the defeat of Saddam Hussein's government and the "old" Iraqi Army. Thus, the capital-W "War" may be seen as limited to the "multinational forces" invasion of March 2003, and the three-week period of full-scale military hostilities between the multinational forces against the established, uniformed military forces (that is, Saddam Hussein's "old" Iraqi Army). According to this view, the "War" ended with the "cessation of major hostilities" between established military forces. Alternatively, if the term includes the subsequent military occupation of Iraq, the "War" ended with the ceremonial handover of sovereignty to the new Iraqi government in June 2004. Though Coalition military officials have used the capitalized phrase Iraq War in this relatively narrow sense, they, and those politically in support of the invasion and current military presence (or 'occupation') also consistently use the terms Iraq war and war in Iraq. A derivative of this viewpoints see much of the current violence almost exclusively as expressions of the Iraqi sectarian divisions, and characterize the occupation as democratic, and preventative of a larger civil war. The informal term "Iraq war" characterizes the various series of conflicts as continuous, beginning with the 2003 invasion and include the violence which resulted as a direct consequence of the invasion and occupation. This is largely used by anti-war activists and war opponents, who also characterize the invasion and occupation as destructive, and a causal force which gave rise to the subsequent violence. (This view usually considers the current violence as both anti-colonialist and sectarian, and characterizes the occupation as anti-democratic, and exacerbating the potential for civil war.) This continuing conflict definition — ie. the references to the invasion, occupation, and post-sovergeinty handover period — includes all hostile conflict in Iraq, specifically the combat among the established military forces and, later, the clandestine, irregular forces of native Iraqi combatants (in conjunction with foreign militants and terrorists) against the multinational forces (and, later, the Iraqi government's new army). Various paramilitary and other militant groups contested the will of the military power and have struggled against the political authority in the country (such as the Coalition Provisional Authority and, more recently, the new sovereign government). Some anti-war activists and war opponents include this violence directed at the Iraqi government (characterized by some as a "rebellion") as part of the "Iraq war". (This view, though, disputes the claim that 'Iraq is now sovereign' and points to the large presence of foreign forces (eg., the multinational forces)). The term "Iraq War" has been used by war proponents, (while the term Bush's War is often used by war opponents and anti-war activists) who characterize the invasion and occupation as a smaller ("necessary") battle within the Global War on Terrorism (GWOT). The official United States government designation for overall military operations in Iraq has been "Operation Iraqi Freedom" since 2003. In spite of problems with the definitions and understandings, and due to its basic economy of language, the use of the "Iraq war" term is prominent in news and opinion reports.^{[http://news.google.com/news?hl=en&ned=us&q=Iraq+war&btnG=Search+News gn]}
War rationales and debates
The more exclusive definitions of the "Iraq War" term (ie. the operations delimited to major hostilities against the Saddam Hussein government of Iraq and limited to the 2003 invasion and the succeeding period of military occupation) rest on rationalisations which tend to disagree, in various opinions, with direct or meaningful comparisons with other conflicts, though these are largely found in stated (or perceived) goals by the Coalition for the invasion and occupation. A better metric to determine precisely who the war is being waged upon should compare the number of civilian Iraqi deaths with the number of Iraqi soldiers killed in the first year of the war. Because the United States has made no effort to estimate civilian casualities, the estimates vary considerably. In contrast, individuals that believe that the "Iraq war" is a continuing conflict base their concept of "war" and "occupation" on more general concepts, as opposed to the definitions of the United Nations, International law, military laws, or political techniques for using language effectively. Being dominantly driven by the United States various critics' eyes, the conflict is characterized by a large and dominant U.S. military presence in a foreign country. To many critics, the Iraq War has parallels with past wars (in particular the Vietnam War). Opponents of the war often hold that the current insurgency conflicts are a direct consequence of the U.S.-led invasion and occupation. They hold to concepts defined largely by lessons learned from American involvement in Southeast Asia. Both critics and supporters of the war have disagreed about the validity of the rationales, and over whether the ex post facto failure to find weapons "stockpiles" indicates the destruction or transportation of such weapons prior to the war or failure of intelligence (and, at an extreme, deliberate deceit). The failure of western intelligence to distinguish between these two possibilities is perceived by some as a failure of intelligence. As stated in public speakings such goals have changed notably since 2002, and views differ as to whether past statements should be considered "failed goals" (and, again at an extreme, "deceptive premises") for the war. : Related topic: Rationales of the 2003 Invasion of Iraq
War justifications
Stated or allegedly perceived goals (i.e. pretexts, or proschemata, as opposed to actual reasons, or prophases) of the invasion and occupation as stated by the United States in 2002 before the Iraq invasion are likewise controversial factors. Over time, these have varied. The first calls for war on Iraq came from the Project for the New American Century (PNAC), and the American Enterprise Institute, with arguments based largely on the disruption of the emerging modernizing Islamic Middle East, and the project of American influence into the next century. These reasons were not those originally given (before the 2003 Iraq invasion) by the Bush administration of the United States before or after the initiation of the war, which instead included: # Hussein's regime was in violation of United Nations demands for weapons inspections. The first reason was obviated by the Bush administration, who set a deadline while inspectors were active in Iraq. # the Hussein regime produced and possessed stockpiles of weapons of mass destruction and posed a grave threat. # Hussein had failed to comply with 19 UN resolutions requiring a full accounting of its weapons of mass destruction and full cooperation with UN inspections.. # that the Hussein regime had ties to al Qaeda and other terrorist organizations that posed a threat to international safety;; and, # promoting democratic self-government in the nearly-entirely autocratic Arab Middle East. Leaders of the multinational coalition have also pointed to human rights issues to justify the war. Saddam's regime's abuse of Iraqi citizens' human rights and the spread of democracy was cited, as articulated in US President George W. Bush 2003 State of the Union Address: : "The dictator who is assembling the world's most dangerous weapons has already used them on whole villages — leaving thousands of his own citizens dead, blind, or disfigured. Iraqi refugees tell us how forced confessions are obtained — by torturing children while their parents are made to watch. International human rights groups have catalogued other methods used in the torture chambers of Iraq: electric shock, burning with hot irons, dripping acid on the skin, mutilation with electric drills, cutting out tongues, and rape. If this is not evil, then evil has no meaning. And tonight I have a message for the brave and oppressed people of Iraq: Your enemy is not surrounding your country — your enemy is ruling your country. And the day he and his regime are removed from power will be the day of your liberation." [http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2003/01/20030128-19.html]
Proponents of the war
Some who have systematically defended the position for going to war have argued a "fight them over there, so we don't have to fight them over here" rationale. Others have pointed out how the terrorists are losing in Iraq (such as exposed in some of Dr. Zawahiri’s intercepted letters). Some also posit that (since September 11), the United States military has not lost a single battle, the multinational forces has removed a dictatorship, and the foundation for a new democracy in the Middle East has been set down. [http://victorhanson.com/articles/hanson101405.html]
Criticisms of the war
September 11 According to opinion polls, the war was unpopular from its beginning in many Coalition countries. The war's unpopularity was reflected in widespread protests, including the largest documented worldwide protest in human history on February 15th, 2003 (eg., a day of Global protests against war in Iraq). The Iraq War was widely viewed by many critics as counterproductive. Many viewed the war as improper (being a moral and ethical violation); and illegal under international law. By the summer of 2005, there was an increase in the number of individuals in the United States that felt the same way. A decorated British Royal Air Force Officer has been court-martialled for refusing to take further part in the war. He was decorated more than once in the Iraq War, and considers that the war is illegal. He has been charged with "refusing to obey a lawful command". And then wrote a book. Since the October 2005 indictment of Lewis Libby, politicians (including some of those who saw the same intelligence that was classified and used by the executive branch in America) and some citizens have begun to question pre-war intelligence and how it may have been misused in order to "sell", in their opinion, a war to the American people.[http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10043606/] On the Senate floor on Thursday, November 10 Senator Ted Kennedy (D-Mass.) expressed, : "President Bush exaggerated the threat to the American people. It was not subtle. It was not nuanced. It was pure, unadulterated fear-mongering!"
Antiwar rationales
The opponents to the wars' main rationales are, in their opinion, the "fixed intelligence" and "lack of connection to 9/11". Antiwar activists and opponents of the war draw direct parallels to the earlier actions (especially the Vietnam War and other conflicts that the US lost) via several debated elements of evidence. This includes:
- its protracted nature, being defined by the continued dominant presence of coalition soldiers (in particular, United States units),
- the previous changing status of the local government,
- the sectarian factionalism,
- changes and conflicts in the publicly stated goals of the war and later occupation,
- the colonialist character of the occupation (i.e. "colonize the government", blanket and unconditional diplomatic immunity for soldiers, etc.),
- evidence of local activity of paramilitary and militant groups (commonly known as the "insurgency" and, at other times, the "resistance"), political dissidence, and non-violent protests,
- evidence of war crimes (eg., Abu Ghraib, indiscriminate bombing, extra-judicial killings, intentional targeting of civilians, etc.), and
- evidence of fraud, incompetence, and inefficiency of the "reconstruction" (eg., Halliburton, reused MREs, etc.), among other evidence that they believe connects this war to previous military actions. Critics have cited that, economically, the various engagements in Iraq has cost the United States about USD $200,000,000,000, and still costs about USD $6,000,000,000 a month. [http://nationalpriorities.org/index.php?option=com_wrapper&Itemid=182] , with exceptionally poor accounting of how the funds are being spent. Concern is growing that corporations with ties to the Bush administration, notably Halliburton, which was provided no-bid contracts that many considered illegal due to their size, to be the primary beneficiaries of the execution of the war.
Countries against
The following countries' governments did not support the War of Iraq:
- The majority of the 114 governments of the Non-Aligned Movement
- Russia
- China
- Pakistan
- Morocco
- Germany
- France
- Canada
- New Zealand
- Belgium
Iraq Survey Group findings
In October 2003, the Iraq Survey Group released the report of interim ISG findings which indicated that small amounts of weapons of mass destruction were uncovered, (including a number of vials containing biological agents stored in the home refrigerators of Iraqi scientists, for example) as well as discoveries of non-WMD programs banned by the United Nations and concealed during the IAEA and UNMOVIC inspections that began in 2002. Kay testified on January 28, 2004 that "the effort that has been directed to this point has been sufficiently intense that it is highly unlikely that there were large stockpiles of deployed, militarized chemical weapons [in Iraq]". The Iraq Survey Group later released the final ISG report which included the following points: # Iraq had destroyed its stockpiles of biological and chemical weapons after the Gulf War [http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,134625,00.html](but discoveries made by the ISG include a "clandestine network of laboratories ... that contained equipment ... suitable for continuing chemical biological weapons research"); # Saddam Hussein convinced his top military commanders that Iraq did indeed possess WMD that could be used against any U.S. invasion force, in order to prevent a coup over the prospects of fighting the U.S.-led Coalition without these weapons; # Iraq's main goal was to end sanctions while preserving the capability to reconstitute WMD production; # Iraq had intended to restart all banned weapons programs as soon as multilateral sanctions against it had been dropped, a prospect that the Iraqi government saw coming soon; # Iraq used procurement contracts allowed under the Oil for Food program to buy influence among U.N. Security Council member states; # No senior Iraqi official interviewed by the ISG believed that Saddam had forsaken WMD forever; # There was "no indication [Iraq had] resumed fissile material or nuclear weapon research and development activities since 1991" (though there was extensive amount of "documents and equipment, hidden in scientists' homes, that would have been useful in resuming uranium enrichment by centrifuge and electromagnetic isotope separation"[http://www.cia.gov/cia/public_affairs/speeches/2003/david_kay_10022003.html] and a "number of post-1995 activities that would have aided the reconstitution of the nuclear weapons program once sanctions were lifted". [http://www.cia.gov/cia/reports/iraq_wmd_2004/chap4.html]). David Kay opened his testimony during the "Kay Report" at a Senate panel by stating "We were almost all wrong" on Iraq (a quote commonly missattributed to the later head of the ISG, Charles Duelfer,[http://www.mrc.org/cyberalerts/2004/cyb20041011.asp#2] [http://watch.windsofchange.net/themes_94.htm#wrong]). Kay went on though to say that, "Iraq was in clear violation of the terms of Resolution 1441". He stated, "the work of the Iraq Survey Group has shown that Saddam Hussein had WMD intentions, had WMD programs that did survive, and did outwit for 12 years the United Nations Security Council and the resolutions [...] in large measure." Kay did "believe that the effort that has been directed to this point has been sufficiently intense that it is highly unlikely that there were large stockpiles of deployed militarized chemical and biological weapons there". He also stated, in spite of missing stockpiles, that "the world is far safer with [...] the removal of Saddam Hussein." q[http://www.ceip.org/files/projects/npp/pdf/Iraq/kaytestimony.pdf]
War of Iraq
The War of Iraq (2003) was the war in the Middle East country of Iraq, which resulted from the the Iraq disarmament crisis of late 2002 and began with the invasion of 2003. The war was between the Iraqi military and a coalition of multinational forces. The United States and the United Kingdom were the two major components of the US-dubbed "Coalition of the willing" that invaded and deposed Saddam Hussein's regime. This was done because Hussein had failed to comply with 19 UN resolutions requiring a full accounting of its weapons of mass destruction and full cooperation with UN inspections . The forces opposing the coalition units were the

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