On
ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ News 24's HARDtalk tonight (Friday, 25 October), Tim Sebastian
interviews Lord John Birt, Former Director General of the ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½
He's been one of the most controversial Director Generals of the
ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½.
Appointed
to the position in the high season of Thatcherism, Birt is credited
with saving the licence fee which keeps the ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ a public broadcaster.
But
he also introduced a series of internal reforms - a kind of "permanent
revolution" that critics say reduced programme quality: programme
budgets were drained to pay for commercial adventures, and management
consultants stalked the corridors of Television Centre "re-engineering"
the corporation.
Since
leaving the ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ Lord Birt has been seconded to Downing Street as
a key strategy advisor to the Government. Tim Sebastian asks him
did he save or stultify the ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½?
Notes to Editors
HARDtalk
is broadcast on ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ News 24, Monday to Friday at 10.30pm, and is
repeated Tuesday to Saturday at 2.30am.
