From The Editor: Culture Secretary Consults Saddleworth News
Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt (picture: DCMS)
We got well used to senior politicians visiting our area during the recent by-election campaign. But I got to meet one more Cabinet minister on Friday, as I was invited to a meeting in Manchester with Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt about the government’s plans for the future of local TV.
The government is currently carrying out a consultation on its proposals, which include creating a national “Channel 6” to act as a ‘spine’ supporting new local news services around the country.
With ITV hinting that traditional regional news programmes such as Granada Reports are too expensive to maintain in their current form, ministers are keen to make sure we don’t end up with the BBC as the only media company offering local TV news.
I was asked along to give my thoughts after last year’s launch of Saddleworth News TV, a monthly online video bulletin, made for this website by students from The Oldham College.
We’ll have to wait and see what Mr Hunt announces after the consultation has ended. But I think the fact I was given a hearing at Friday’s meeting, along with bosses from established media groups such as Granada, the BBC, the Manchester Evening News, GMG Radio and others, demonstrates that the government is interested in exploring all kinds of ways in which people may be able to get local news in the future.
You can read more details of the government’s plans, and respond to the consultation if you wish, by clicking here.
Saddleworth News TV bulletins can be watched here.
Author: Jude Gidney - Editor
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Excellent, Richard.
It’s good to see you getting some high-level recognition for a great service. Keep up the good work.
(pssst! – as agreed, you can leave the £10 in a plain brown envelope in a used Tesco bag in the phone box outside The Swan…..)
It is good news but please beware of these politicians claiming this shows the ‘Big Society’ is working and claiming credit for it. This is Cameron’s real hidden agenda; to claim credit and get reflected glory for almost all voluntary schemes even if they existed long before he came up wih his BS (initials I find more appropriate for something else.