Media Confidential How to protect the BBC from its enemies
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Jan 26, 2026 Justin Lewis, a media researcher and British Academy fellow, and Georgina Bourne, a researcher who led the public service media project, discuss protecting the BBC. They compare international funding and governance models. They explore independence, democratic oversight, funding mechanisms and how to guard against political capture.
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Public Service Media Builds Democratic Trust
- Well-funded public service media correlates with higher trust and democratic knowledge across countries.
- Georgina Bourne and Justin Lewis argue this links to security, sovereignty and soft power.
Make Funding Independent From Government
- Replace fragile ministerial control with independent, arm’s-length funding and governance structures.
- Justin Lewis recommends models like Germany's household levy or Scandinavian tax funding with governance safeguards.
Use An Independent Funding Body
- Create an independent expert body to assess and recommend multi-year funding settlements like Germany's KEF.
- Use rigorous market analysis to set budgets rather than annual political haggling.
