Today's show 15/02/12

Years ago, when I lived in England, I remember the furore that erupted when our county council made a load of staff redundant with huge severance payments on a Friday, and then re-employed them the following Monday. You have probably heard of similar cases, so how about discussing this on your programme one day? I'd listen to that! And here are some recent examples of similar behaviour by a public-funded body that you could use to highlight this practice:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/bbc/9083320/BBCs-redundancy-payouts-criticised-as-staff-get-old-jobs-back.html

BBC's redundancy payouts criticised as staff get old jobs back

The BBC has been criticised after spending £4million making staff redundant - only for nearly half of them to continue working as normal.
The money was paid to around 70 workers as compensation when the corporation revealed plans to relocate their posts north to Salford in the Midlands. But after accepting the redundancy money - reported to be £57,000 each, on average - it is understood that some 17 workers simply carried on in the same jobs.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2101282/Half-BBC-staff-pocketed-4m-pay-carried-working-job.html

Half of BBC staff who pocketed £4m pay-off carried on working in the same job

The BBC spent £4million laying off staff – only for nearly half of them to continue working as normal. The money was paid to around 70 workers as compensation because their posts were being relocated north to Salford. But after accepting the ‘redundancy’ money – £57,000 each, on average – about 17 of them simply carried on in the same jobs, it is understood.

So, I'll look forward to that. Any idea when you might talk about it?

Alternatively, you could have talked about this one:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-17038937

Supreme Court upholds BBC's refusal on Israel report

The UK Supreme Court has rejected an appeal against the BBC's refusal to publish a report into its coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. ... He had asked for the 2004 Balen Report to be disclosed under the Freedom of Information Act. However, the BBC argued that it was exempt from the Act with regard to information it held for the purposes of "journalism, art or literature". Mr Sugar, who died of cancer last year aged 61, had wanted to know whether the report supported his claim that the corporation was biased against Israel.

 

Ah, those pesky words crop up again: for the purposes of journalism, art or literature. I've come up against that particular barricade myself in connection with my FOI requests about your programme. Just remind me again, who is the publicly-funded BBC accountable to? And why does it keep sooooo much stuff secret?

You said on Ken's show earlier, "I was in the cafe this morning looking at the papers" and went on to claim that this was research. This, Jeremy, explains a lot. I am left to wonder which particular rag is at the top of the pile, although I feel sure it will be either the Daily Mail or The Guardian, and with the Daily Express at the bottom of the pile and never looked at.

And it was good to hear Ken question the validity of TV Licences. Now there is a topic worthy of discussion one day, as I have suggested many, many times before. But not today, of course, and instead we have this stuff which you think might possibly be of interest to me. Oh, how wrong you are...

1) ALCOHOL ABUSE - David Cameron wants more to be done to cut alcohol abuse in England. If you're a parent, how did you attempt to stop your teenager binge-drinking? : I don't drink alcohol. I don't live in England. I am not a parent. I do not have a teenager. How less relevant is it possible to be? Next...

2) BRITAIN'S MOST HONEST MAN? - The most honest man in Britain? A street cleaner finds a £21,000 Rolex watch and hands it in to the police : Slow news day, is it? Not mentioned by you on Ken's show, or on the BBC news web page, was the snippet of information that was included on R2's 08:00 news this morning, and that was that the finder gets to keep the watch if it is not claimed in a set number of days, so it will either go back to its owner or back to the finder. I shall remain puzzled why you think this news. Next...

3) SUDDEN SIGHT LOSS - We discuss sudden sight loss and meet a man who went blind overnight : Sounds terrible, in all sorts of ways. Next...

4) RANGERS - What's the future for Rangers as the iconic Scottish club enters administration? : I cannot find words to express how little I care about this.

 

Nothing for me again today then ... perhaps I need to artificially create some issues that affect me so that you can talk about them. Or perhaps not.

 

The Jeremy Vine Show - no, football IS news, no really, it is!

Complaint and FOI responses 04/01/12

Complaint response received 09/01/12:

Reference CAS-1226295-676LXX

Thank you for contacting us.

I understand you are unhappy at being blocked from Jeremy Vine's Twitter feed.

However, the Twitter account in question is a personal account and it is neither officially linked to, nor does it represent the views of, the BBC.

Thank you again for taking the time to contact us.

Kind Regards
Txxxx Hxxxxx
BBC Complaints
www.bbc.co.uk/complaints


Response sent:

Thank you for your reply on this matter in which you state: "However, the Twitter account in question is a personal account and it is neither officially linked to, nor does it represent the views of, the BBC.".

I contest your viewpoint that his account is "personal" on two counts:
 - Mr Vine's Twitter account is promoted heavily on his programme and his show web page.
 - The BBC has issued two sets of guidelines (http://www.bbc.co.uk/guidelines/editorialguidelines/page/guidance-blogs-personal-full#social-networking-sites and http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/bsp/hi/pdfs/14_07_11_news_official_tweeter_guidance.pdf) in which instruction is given on to how these so-called "personal" accounts are to be used. If these accounts were not under some kind of BBC control then there would be no need to issue these guidelines.

Vanessa Feltz has two Twitter accounts: @vanessafeltz appears to be her personal account, but @vanessaonair appears to be an official account where listeners are encouraged to "Tweet Vanessa on the big talking points every weekday morning from 9 on BBC London 94.9." in EXACTLY the same way as Mr Vine uses his Twitter account for his programme. In addition, she has a link to @vanessaonair on her show web page, not her personal account.

My original complaint still stands, but I would like to extend it to include
 - Mr Vine is using a "personal" account in an "official" role to promote and comment on his programme
 - Mr Vine continually encourages his listeners to follow his "personal" Twitter feed on-air.
 - Mr Vine's "personal" Twitter feed is promoted on his programme web page.


And the usual FOI response received 09/01/12:


Freedom of Information request – RFI201200xx

Thank you for your request to the BBC of 4th January, seeking the following information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000.

Jeremy Vine’s twitter account is personal to him and he runs the account. The BBC doesn’t
therefore hold any information about how it is managed or the number of followers.

If the account was owned by his show then the information you have requested would be
excluded from the Act because it is held for the purposes of ‘journalism, art or literature.’ The
BBC is therefore not obliged to provide this information to you and will not be doing so on this
occasion. Part VI of Schedule 1 to FOIA provides that information held by the BBC and the other public service broadcasters is only covered by the Act if it is held for ‘purposes other than those of journalism, art or literature”. The BBC is not required to supply information held for the purposes of creating the BBC’s output or information that supports and is closely associated with these creative activities.

A complaint and an FOI request

It still bugs me that I cannot follow Vine on Twitter as he has blocked my account from doing so. While I could set up new accounts ad infinitum I suspect that they would all just end up being blocked in the same way. Every day he tells us "... and you can follow me on Twitter ..." but the simple fact is that I cannot because he does not want me to do so. His hypocrisy is incredible as he is, after all, preventing free speech by restricting any comments that I would wish to make and so almost guaranteeing that any comments agree with his own.

I can still read his feed on Twitter (complete with his newly-updated background picture: https://twitter.com/#!/theJeremyVine - WTF?) but I can only read others' comments on his posts if I logout of Twitter. After logging back in I can reply to his posts, but as I am not a follower most of them seem to vanish.

So, I've submitted a complaint and a Freedom of Information request to the BBC to see if anything can be done about this. I don't expect it will, but it keeps them busy! Both have the same two opening paragraphs:

I have read the BBC's guidelines for its staff on the use of Twitter (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/bsp/hi/pdfs/14_07_11_news_official_tweeter_guidance.pdf  and http://www.bbc.co.uk/guidelines/editorialguidelines/page/guidance-blogs-personal-summary) but cannot find any reference to BBC staff "blocking" people from following their Twitter feed and under what circumstances this would occur.

My Twitter account has been blocked by Jeremy Vine from following his feed (@theJeremyVine) for reasons that are unknown to me, and despite his many suggestions of "you can follow me on Twitter..." during his Radio 2 programmes. His Twitter account includes in its description "All views personal of course" but the BBC guidelines cover these very same "personal" accounts in some detail and so I consider them to still be under the BBC's control to an extent, especially when bearing in mind their promotion during BBC programmes.

The complaint ends with:

My complaint is that I have been blocked from following Mr Vine's Twitter feed and so I am prevented from commenting on his postings. I consider that Mr Vine is not following the BBC guidelines (as specified above).

The FOI request ends with:

I would like to know, please, how many Twitter users Mr Vine has blocked from following his feed.

I will, of course, post any replies here.

Today's show 17/11/11

So, how do you spell "Heroin" when describing the drug? Not with an "e" on the end, as was shown on your web page yesterday before it was corrected. I was SO annoyed with myself that I didn't spot that.

What is it about Thursdays and your web page? This is the third week in a row that the update has been significantly later than other days. Does somebody have a day off on Thursdays?

So, what can I amuse you with while we are waiting? How about this from your beloved Daily Mail...

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2062446/BBC-jobs-4-500-titles-2-000-managers.html

Anyone for Decision Support? BBC has 4,500 job titles... and 2,000 of them are managers!

There are almost 4,500 job titles in existence at the Corporation, it has emerged, and almost 2,000 of its staff have the word manager in their title.

It is thought there are even more staff on top of this who are classed as and paid as managers but do not have the word in their job titles.
Last month, BBC chief operating officer Caroline Thomson was asked on Newsnight why when the Corporation wanted to put money into programmes it was at the same time trying to recruit a ‘decision support analyst’ on £58,000 a year.
She admitted: ‘I don’t know what that person actually does but what I do say is that you want the BBC to be a well-managed organisation.’

Good to see Newsnight putting the BBC on the spot. You see Jeremy, it is possible to talk about and castigate the BBC even though they are your employers. You really should try it some time. I'd listen to that!

And then there is this one...

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/bbc/8895154/Feud-between-Robert-Peston-and-Eddie-Mair-erupts-on-Radio-4-PM-programme.html

Feud between Robert Peston and Eddie Mair erupts on Radio 4 PM programme

A feud between two of the BBC's best loved presenters erupted into the open live on radio yesterday when Robert Peston, the Business Editor, accused news presenter Eddie Mair of "casting him out into the wilderness".

Best loved? By who? Not me! So the news reporters become the news. I'm sure that is not how it should be.

And meanwhile the BBC's Freedom Of Information department have actually dained to answer one of my questions. Their response goes likes this:

Freedom of Information request – RFI201112xx

Thank you for your request to the BBC of 10th October, seeking the following information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000:
Has Jeremy Vine received any products from Apple Inc. (manufacturer of the iPad, iPhone, etc.) on a discounted, complimentary, gift or free-of-charge basis in connection with or following any of his broadcasts for the BBC.
First of all please accept my apologies for the delay in responding to your request.
I can confirm that Jeremy Vine has not received any products from Apple on a discounted or complementary basis from Apple. The BBC has strict guidance relating to hospitality and gifts and you can find details at:
http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/foi/classes/policies_procedures/antibribery_policy.pdf

You may also like to know that the BBC has recently introduced anti bribery training which it requires all staff with editorial responsibilities to complete

This is good to know. (Their use of the word "complementary" is, of course, incorrect, despite my information request having it correctly spelt as "complimentary". They also managed to mis-spell two lines of my postal address in their reply. Quality!)

11:30 and still nothing on your web page, so let's have a listen to what happens when Ken takes the p155 out of you..., ooops, I mean... talks to you about your programme today. Oh, here you are now, talking about your dry-cleaning discussion on Twitter for some reason. For God's sake... I'm still blocked by you on Twitter, so my Freedom Of Speech continues to be stifled.

Well, you've just finished with Ken, and still nothing on the web page.

Programme started, still nothing.

12:23, finally updated, but I'm busy now so this is going to have to be quick...

1) SEPP BLATTER - Sepp Blatter says that racism on the football pitch can be absolved by the shake of hands. Find out more in this article from the Telegraph : Football? I shall sleep well this afternoon. Next...

2) SYRIA - Syria is a place most of us know little about. If we learn more about the country, would we be prepared to help her people? : You actually said on Ken's show, "We know nothing about Syria". You might not, but I do. Please do not include me in your sweeping generalisations! Not all of your listeners are as thick as you think they are. Next...

3) DRY CLEANING - Were your clothes ruined by dry cleaners? Find out more in this article from the Telegraph : I honestly cannot remember the last time I used a dry cleaners, if I have ever used one at all. Is this news? Next...

4) WORK EXPERIENCE - Should young people be paid to do work experience? We talk to two parliamentary interns who are paid. Find out more in this article from the Guardian : Do you use interns to update your web page? It would explain a lot if you do. You said on Ken's show that one of the interns you were going to speak to works in Ed Miliband's office. Poor bloke. This will brighten his day: http://awkwardedmilibandmoments.tumblr.com/

The Jeremy Vine Show - if only it were as good as Newsnight

Today's show 11/10/11

Oh, it's you again. I'll admit that curiosity has got the better of me and I had a quick look on Wikipedia to find out more about you (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paddy_O'Connell). No wonder I have never heard of you as I have not knowingly listened to or watched any of the programmes that you have been involved with.

So let's see if you can persuade me to change the habit of a lifetime...

1) CHILD POVERTY - A new report says that child poverty could increase from a fifth to a quarter over the next 3 years. As incomes fall, what has your child had to go without? : What child is that then? We have no children, but thanks for reminding me. Next...

2) MOTABILITY SCHEME - If you're disabled, have you been part of the Motability Scheme that allows you to lease a car with taxpayers' money? One commentator describes it as a 'racket'. Read Richard Littlejohn's article from Mail Online : Remember what I said yesterday? No Daily Mail = No Jeremy Vine Show. Good to see that my theory is holding up well. I have not been part of the Motability Scheme as, fortunately, I am not disabled. Next...

3) BLOOD DONATION - How often have you donated blood? One woman has given 120 pints of her blood. Do you feel guilty you don't donate? Find out more from Metro : Good for her. I gave blood once, and it made me so ill that I had to have several days off work to recover. The advice I was given back then was "don't bother again", so I haven't. Next...

4) PLAYGROUND NOISE - A council in Staffordshire has stopped kids from using a swing because they say it creates too much noise and disturbance. Are you fed up with noise from a children's playground? Find out more from the Stafford Express & Star : Just checked again, and there is no children's playground anywhere near here.

Well, that didn't take long, did it? Four topics summarily dismissed as being of absolutely no relevance or interest to me at all. And it has been like that every day since this abysmal programme started on Radio 2.

So, what would I have liked you to discuss? How about this...

Today's issue that affects me: The BBC's Freedom of Information department tell me that they will not provide ANY information about BBC programmes, so what "Information" do I have the "Freedom" to request?
I received an email from them this morning, which said:
Thank you for your email below. Information related to programmes is excluded from the Act because it is held for the purposes of ‘journalism, art or literature.’ We therefore consider that any information relating to the Jeremy Vine Show is likely to be out of scope and we are therefore unable to provide examples of information that could be supplied under the Act. Part VI of Schedule 1 to FOIA provides that information held by the BBC and the other public service broadcasters is only covered by the Act if it is held for ‘purposes other than those of journalism, art or literature”. The BBC is not required to supply information held for the purposes of creating the BBC’s output or information that supports and is closely associated with these creative activities.

 

There is nothing like freedom of information, and that is nothing like Freedom of Information.

 

The Jeremy Vine Show - our secrets are safe with us

FOI requests, and another complaint

To my dear blog readers:

It appears that I am wasting my time by sending Freedom of Information requests to the BBC. I had another email from them this morning, and the first paragraph says it all:

Thank you for your email below. Information related to programmes is excluded from the Act because it is held for the purposes of ‘journalism, art or literature.’ We therefore consider that any information relating to the Jeremy Vine Show is likely to be out of scope and we are therefore unable to provide examples of information that could be supplied under the Act. Part VI of Schedule 1 to FOIA provides that information held by the BBC and the other public service broadcasters is only covered by the Act if it is held for ‘purposes other than those of journalism, art or literature”.  The BBC is not required to supply information held for the purposes of creating the BBC’s output or information that supports and is closely associated with these creative activities.

So, we can ask about anything we like PROVIDED that it does not relate to anything to do with the BBC's programmes. Grrrr....

I've just filed another complaint on the BBC web site about blatant advertising on the Chris Evans and JV programmes:

There have been a number of broadcasts on Radio 2 recently that have turned in to advertising promotions for various products, viz:

Jeremy Vine Show, 6th October: Following the unfortunate death of Steve Jobs, Mr Vine chose to devote 30 minutes of his programme to his death and his technical innovations. It was described thus on his web page: "How did Apple change your world? Can you remember the first time you marvelled at an Apple product?". I feel that the death of Mr Jobs was only of secondary importance in a segment that turned in to a promotion for Apple products of all kinds, and without mention of "other products are available from other manufacturers".

Chris Evans Show, 10th and 11th October: On both occasions just after the 8am news I lost count of the number of times that "Red Bull" was mentioned and feel that undue prominence was given to this brand. Although Mr Evans was using the reference in relation to Red Bull's motor racing prowess, I cannot help but think that the Red Bull energy drink brand manager must have been very pleased with free advertising that the brand was receiving.

My complaint is that such blatant advertising of products has no place on Radio 2, especially when it is not balanced by mention of other manufacturers' products.

I'll post the response when it arrives. Anybody want to bet that my complaint has been recorded in the Audience Log?

Freedom of Information - another one!

Perhaps they having a "blitz" on my requests as I have just received a 4-page document...


Freedom of Information request – RFI20111192

Thank you for your request to the BBC of 29 September, under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (“the Act”) seeking the following information:

 - how many complaints in total were received by the BBC Complaints Department that related specifically to the Jeremy Vine programme on Radio 2 during the most recent 12-month period for which you have details available

The information you have requested is excluded from the Act because it is held for the purposes of ‘journalism, art or literature.’ The BBC is therefore not obliged to provide this information to you and will not be doing so on this occasion. Part VI of Schedule 1 to the Act provides that information held by the BBC and the other public service broadcasters is only covered by the Act if it is held for ‘purposes other than those of journalism, art or literature”. The BBC is not required to supply information held for the purposes of creating the BBC’s output or information that supports and is closely associated with these creative activities1, including information relating to the subject of editorial complaints. The BBC’s independence and impartiality would be at risk through disclosure of information on editorial complaints.


I had to laugh at this bit:

The BBC agrees (with the Information Commissioner's Office) that we have the right to protect our journalistic and editorial independence by maintaining just such a private space in which to produce our content. This extends to the sifting and review of praise and criticism from audiences, as well as the seeking of an independent view of criticism in order to undertake this review process. This is an important part of the BBC’s process of creating and improving programmes. Despite the BBC’s obligation to be independent and impartial, many bodies, groups and individuals attempt to influence our output. This pressure takes many forms and has to be resisted by programme makers across the BBC.

It is all very well attempting to resist influence on the BBC's impartiality, but when it is coming from WITHIN the BBC they really don't stand a chance.

Freedom of Information - how difficult can it be?

Email received:

Please be advised that the FOI Act provides a right of access to recorded information held by a public authority. Public authorities are not required to answer questions if  this would mean creating new information or giving an opinion or judgement that is not already recorded.  We are therefore not obliged to provide examples of questions that would be answered under FOIA; regarding the programme specified below.

If you wish to request recorded information held by the BBC, please clarify what information you require.

You must provide enough information to enable us to identify and locate the information requested. You may wish to refer to guidelines from the Information Commissioner's Office on how to make a request http://www.ico.gov.uk/for_the_public/official_information/how_access.aspx

Yours sincerely,
The Information Policy & Compliance Team
BBC Freedom of Information
Room 2252, BBC White City
201 Wood Lane
London W12 7TS


Email sent:

Many thanks for your very prompt but anonymous email.

My problem is this: I have requested several items of recorded information held by a public authority, viz The BBC, yet every time I do so my "right of access" is prohibited as the information I require falls foul of your "journalism, art or literature" veto.

All of my requests have been for factual information, and at no point have I asked for an "opinion or judgement that is not already recorded".

Perhaps my use of the word "question" was incorrect. Please allow me to rephrase my original enquiry:

To save us both a lot of time and emails, I would be grateful if you would outline for me exactly what information you CAN provide about this programme with, perhaps, some examples of the information that could be supplied by your department that is not connected with "journalism, art or literature".

Today's show 10/10/11

Hello Paddy!

Another Monday, and again JV is away and stitched you up with the scrapings from an empty barrel labelled "Monday News". Oh well...

Today's issue that affects me: Who are you?

As I was saying...

1) POLITENESS AWARDS - A new report says that, contrary to what we might think, the British are becoming politer. For one day only, take part in the Radio 2 Politeness Awards 2011. Who would you like to nominate? Find out more from Mail Online : There is an obvious and easy answer to this question: Howard Schultz from Starbucks, who despite Jeremy's attempts to ridicule, humiliate and trap remained cool, calm, collected and polite while giving Jeremy the kind of responses that had been overdue for many, many years. Somehow though I don't think he will be on your show today, so I have no need to listen. And it is good to see the Daily Mail making a slow but steady return as the prime source for your discussion topics. We all knew you could not live without it!
No Daily Mail = No Jeremy Vine Show. Next...

 

2) LIAM FOX - The Defence Secretary Liam Fox has apologised over the row in which his best friend was allowed to take part in top-level meetings. Have you ever tried to help a friend get on and then regretted it? : No. Next...

3) MISCARRIAGES - Women who suffered miscarriages are being put through emotional torture when they are placed in the same wards as mothers and babies. Find out more from the Press Association : I am sure that this must be horrible, but I am still not a woman. Next...

4) SPITTING - This man from Enfield Council is trying to ban spitting. Is spitting ever acceptable? : "And our special expert guest in the studio today is ... Bob Carolgees". If only! Have a Gold Star for discussing "banning", Jeremy will be proud of you.

 

Knowing of your intimate knowledge of everything published by the Daily Mail, I have no doubt that you will have seen this (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2046636/MPs-paid-thousands-appear-BBC-As-Corporation-cuts-politicians-given-licence-fee-cash-TV-radio.html):

MPs paid thousands to appear on the BBC:
As Corporation cuts back, politicians are given licence fee cash to go on TV and radio

MPs are being handed thousands of pounds of licence fee money simply to appear on the BBC.
It proves the BBC has become a money-spinner for the political classes.

I am left wondering if this applies to ex-MPs too, and Galloway in particular. Last week I sent a Freedom of Information request to the BBC in which I asked two questions:

 - I would like to know how much George Galloway was paid for his appearances on Radio 2's Jeremy Vine Show during the most recent 12-month period for which you have details available.
 - I would like to know how much Jeremy Vine was paid to present his programme on Radio 2 during the most recent 12-month period for which you have details available.

I've just had my reply....

 

Freedom of Information request – RFI2011 1210
Thank you for your request to the BBC of the 4th October, seeking the following information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000:

 - how much George Galloway was paid for his appearances on Radio 2’s Jeremy Vine’s Show during the most recent 12-month period for which you have details available
 - how much Jeremy Vine was paid to present his programme on radio 2 during the most recent 12-month period for which you have details available

The information you have requested is excluded from the Act because it is held for the purposes of ‘journalism, art or literature.’ The BBC is therefore not obliged to provide this information to you and will not be doing so on this occasion.

 

Again, I am puzzled as to what information the BBC's FOI team can actually give out without falling foul (or hiding behind?) the "journalism, art or literature" veto. One of the BBC's favourite subjects is itself (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/bbc/8813428/All-I-get-on-the-BBC-these-days-is-...-the-BBC.html) so how about discussing the BBC's inbred secrecy one day? I'd listen to that!

 

The Jeremy Vine Show - unless it isn't, of course

Freedom of Information response 04/10/11

No surprises here. I wonder, what information CAN the FOI people provide?

Freedom of Information request – RFI2011 1210

Thank you for your request to the BBC of the 4th October, seeking the following information
under the Freedom of Information Act 2000:

 - how much George Galloway was paid for his appearances on Radio 2’s Jeremy Vine’s Show during the most recent 12-month period for which you have details available

 - how much Jeremy Vine was paid to present his programme on radio 2 during the most recent 12-month period for which you have details available

The information you have requested is excluded from the Act because it is held for the purposes of ‘journalism, art or literature.’ The BBC is therefore not obliged to provide this information to you and will not be doing so on this occasion. Part VI of Schedule 1 to FOIA provides that information held by the BBC and the other public service broadcasters is only covered by the Act if it is held for ‘purposes other than those of journalism, art or literature”. The BBC is not required to supply information held for the purposes of creating the BBC’s output or information that supports and is closely associated with these creative activities.


Follow-up FOI request sent:

Over the past few weeks I have submitted a number of FOI requests regarding this programme. All of these have been declined due to your "journalism, art or literature" veto.

 

To save us both a lot of time and emails, could you outline for me exactly what information you CAN provide about this programme with, perhaps, some examples of questions that would be answered by your department?

 

Thank you!

Freedom of information request 07/10/11

I've just sent this one to foi@bbc.co.uk:

I would like to know, please, if Jeremy Vine has received any products from Apple Inc. (manufacturer of the iPad, iPhone, etc.) on a discounted, complimentary, gift or free-of-charge basis in connection with or following any of his broadcasts for the BBC.

Today's show 06/10/11

Another early update to your web page today - I'm impressed! A quick scan shows that today's topics don't match anything that I would like discussed, as usual.

With the BBC all over the news today it comes as no surprise at all that you are completely ignoring these stories, even when they come from your favourite rag: The Daily Mail. This one was published a few days ago (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/article-2043482/Whatever-BBC-say-Britain-mainly-white-Christian-straight.html):
Whatever the BBC say, Britain is still mainly white, Christian and straight
Only this week the BBC announced it was scrapping references to AD and BC because it didn’t want to offend, or discriminate against, non-Christians. To hell with the millions of Christians who pay the licence fee.
The BBC projects an image of Britain which is unrecognisable to most of its inhabitants. Its news bulletins and dramas are all refracted through the prism of diversity, multi-culturalism and political dogma.
Of course I understand how these attitudes become ingrained. If you live in London, the picture of Britain painted by the BBC and the Guardianistas seems pretty accurate.
BBC producers, quangocrats  and Left-wing political activists only ever meet other people like themselves.
Where the problem arises is when they impose the prejudices of their own, self-regarding demi-monde on the rest of the country.

Any comments? I thought not.

Next one (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2045752/BBC-axe-2-000-jobs-try-cut-20-budgets.html):
Bloated BBC finally cuts itself down to size as 2,000 staff face axe
The effort to save £1.3billion over four years will be seen as a tacit admission by the BBC that there are limits to its bloated realm.
Radio 4 will be relatively protected but Radio 1 and Radio 2 are likely to have to make major cuts.

Here is my comprehensive suggestion list for cuts at Radio 2:
The Jeremy Vine Show: The presenter has such a large number of staff working for him to "research" stories, answer the phone, deal with emails, etc., that he has time to update his Twitter account frequently during working hours, and even has time to socialise with a family member at a coffee shop (October 5th).
<Ends>

It was on 15th August this year (http://lunchtimeloather.blogspot.com/2011/08/todays-show-150811.html) that the abominable Ms Feltz laid in to David Starkey (presumably in his absence) about the comments he made on an episode of Newsnight three days earlier. Interesting to read now (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/8804265/David-Starkey-cleared-over-racist-Newsnight-remarks.html) that he has been cleared of making allegedly racist comments by the Press Complaints Commission and the justified criticism of discussion host Emily "No Mates" Maitlis (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/8804820/David-Starkey-why-Emily-Maitlis-is-a-disgrace.html). I guess there is no chance at all that you will set the record straight and apologise on Feltz's behalf for the pillorying that he got that day.

But, and unlike Matthew Wright, you don't do apologies.

Today's issue that affects me: I've just taken delivery of some goods from a company for use with my business. Unfortunately they have not included any paperwork (receipt) in the package. How do I show that in my accounts?

So, what does that leave us with?

1) STEVE JOBS - Steve Jobs, the founder of Apple, has died. How did Apple change your world? Can you remember the first time you marvelled at an Apple product? : Very sad, and he was undoubtedly a great innovator. I used to be involved in the computer software industry and try as we might we could not get our standard products to run on Apple computers. This was about 15 years ago, maybe more. I do remember the first time I marvelled at an Apple product, as my boss stood over me and said "You'd better get this to work, or there will be trouble", which left me marvelling as to why Apple should make it all so different and difficult. In the end the technical challenges proved too much so the company simply pretended that Apple computers didn't exist. Although this episode gave me a few sleepless nights all those years ago it was hardly world changing, don't you think? Since then I have never knowingly used or spent a single penny on an Apple product. Just remind me again, who is your target audience? Next...

2) HOT CURRY - We go to the curry restaurant in Edinburgh which held the hottest curry competition. What is it about hot curries and people trying to prove how macho they are? : Slow news day, is it? Never having eaten in my life anything that could be described as a curry, I have absolutely no idea, or interest. However, I am sure that you will manage to ridicule them in any way that you can. What is it about radio presenters trying to prove how patronising they are? Next...

3) JARROW MARCHERS - A group of young unemployed are following in the footsteps of the Jarrow marchers from the 1930s : Good for them, but I am neither young or unemployed. Next...

4) MEMORIAL BENCHES - When you die do you want a memorial bench? James Campbell from Alnmouth in Northumberland decided he wanted to enjoy his before he dies : It IS a slow news day then. You could always have talked about the BBC!

The Jeremy Vine Show - elephant? what elephant?

Freedom of Information requests

I've probably wasted my time sending these, but you never know...

FOI Request 1:
I would like to know how much Jeremy Vine was paid to present his programme on Radio 2 during the most recent 12-month period for which you have details available.

FOI Request 2:
I would like to know how much George Galloway was paid for his appearances on Radio 2's Jeremy Vine Show during the most recent 12-month period for which you have details available.

Today's show 23/09/11

You will remember your show that was broadcast from Iceland back in June. I submitted a Freedom of Information request about the costs and travel arrangements associated with that programme, but my request was turned down by the BBC's FOI department as my questions fell outside the BBC's own special interpretation of the FOI legislation. So, I appealed to the Information Commissioner's Office for the BBC's decision to be overturned and that the details I requested should be supplied. Despite their best efforts, they have advised me that previous legal challenges to the BBC have failed and that my request would fail too. This is all connected to the BBC refusing to give any information that relates to "art, journalism or literature". I am left wondering exactly what information the BBC would provide that could possibly fall outside of these three criteria in one way or another. Not much, I suspect.

As a licence payer I feel that I should be able to find out exactly how MY MONEY is being spent, but the BBC choose to keep that secret from me, and I feel that that is unfair. So...

Today's issue that affects me: Why is the BBC so secretive?

In the absence of any hard facts, I will continue to think that your trip to Iceland was nothing more than a "jolly" for you and your team. I am, of course, happy to be proved wrong.

 

I guess it will be a cold day in hell when you choose to discuss anything that relates to the corrupt, inefficient, biased and over-bearing BBC.

So, moving on to today's irrelevancies, and I note that you have chosen not to supply links to relevant pages today for some reason, so I shall supply my own....

1) ECONOMY - David Cameron says we're not quite staring down the barrel when it comes to the world economy but the pattern is clear. Is that how it feels in your business and high street, or is that too negative? : I rarely visit our nearest High Street so I am unable to form an opinion on that particular aspect. As for my business, I have more work than I know what to do with and I am currently taking bookings for work that I will not get to until next Spring. I have even tried quoting ridiculous prices for work in an effort to turn away work that I am not overly keen to do, and the reaction is always "Oooh, that sounds very reasonable". Is it just me? Next...

2) LIVING IN A SHED - A couple in Hampshire move into a shed to save money to buy a house - but the council says they can't live there : No surprise at all that I found this one in the Daily Mail (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2040486/Havant-Council-bans-NHS-worker-Victoria-Campbell-living-parents-shed.html). Interesting that the picture of a shed that you use on your web page (http://wwwimg.bbc.co.uk/programmes/i/86x48/45c918a66a7b50ffb8776ce2cf988a009aca227f.jpg) bears absolutely no relation to the shed in question. Was this a deliberate attempt to mislead your listeners? Planning Law is quite clear, and if this couple are in breach of those laws then the council will always have the final word, so what is there to discuss? Next...

 

3) FEMINISM - We discuss whether feminism has failed women : As a bloke, I hope you will understand why this is of no interest to me. Next...

4) RAG AND BONE MEN - Rag-and-bone men in Staffordshire have been told that they're too noisy : A quick search found more details (http://www.thisisstaffordshire.co.uk/Residents-want-noisy-rag-bone-men-fined-making/story-13380777-detail/story.html) but I don't live in Staffordshire and this is not a problem that we have around here. In the 9 years I have lived here I have never seen a so-called "rag and bone" man. In fact, they are not "rag and bone" men at all, they are scrap metal collectors. Rag and Bone men collected precisely that, rags and bones, but I suspect that there are not many - if any - left in the UK. More misinformation from the BBC!

 

The Jeremy Vine Show - completely unaccountable, apparently

Freedom of Information request for Iceland programme - response

Freedom of Information request – RFI201107xx

Thank you for your request to the BBC of 24th June, seeking the following information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000:

1) Excluding Mr Vine, how many other BBC staff travelled to Iceland in support of this broadcast?
2) What were the travel costs incurred as a result of the visit to Iceland by Mr Vine and his associates?
3) What was the additional cost (studio hire, satellite link, etc.) incurred by the BBC in broadcasting a live programme from Iceland as compared to broadcasting from the London studio?
4) What was the total subsistence and accomodation cost for Mr Vine and his associates?
5) On what date and at what approximate time did the group leave the UK?
6) On what date and at what approximate time did they return to the UK?

The information you have requested is excluded from the Act because it is held for the purposes of ‘journalism, art or literature.’ The BBC is therefore not obliged to provide this information to you and will not be doing so on this occasion. Part VI of Schedule 1 to FOIA provides that information held by the BBC and the other public service broadcasters is only covered by the Act if it is held for ‘purposes other than those of journalism, art or literature”. The BBC is not required to supply information held for the purposes of creating the BBC’s output or information that supports and is closely associated with these creative activities.

You may not be aware that one of the main policy drivers behind the limited application of the Act to public service broadcasters was to protect freedom of expression and the rights of the media under Article 10 European Convention on Human Rights (“ECHR”). The BBC, as a media organisation, is under a duty to impart information and ideas on all matters of public interest and the importance of this function has been recognised by the European Court of Human Rights. Maintaining our editorial independence is a crucial factor in enabling the media to fulfil this function.

That said, the BBC makes a huge range of information available about our programmes and content on bbc.co.uk. We also proactively publish information covered by the Act on our publication scheme and regularly handle requests for information under the Act.

Freedom of Information request for Iceland programme

I have just sent the following to the BBC's Freedom of Information department. Let's see if we, the licence fee payers, got value for money yesterday....

The Jeremy Vine Show was broadcast from Iceland on Thursday 23rd June 2011. I would be grateful if you would supply me with some information concerning this broadcast under your Freedom of Information procedure.

 

My questions are:

 

1) Excluding Mr Vine, how many other BBC staff travellend to Iceland in support of this broadcast?

 

2) What were the travel costs incurred as a result of the visit to Iceland by Mr Vine and his associates?

 

3) What was the additional cost (studio hire, satellite link, etc.) incurred by the BBC in broadcasting a live programme from Iceland as compared to broadcasting from the London studio?

 

4) What was the total subsistence and accomodation cost for Mr Vine and his associates?

 

5) On what date and at what approximate time did the group leave the UK?

 

6) On what date and at what approximate time did they return to the UK?

 

Many thanks.

Today's show 23/06/11

I'm not sure what to say about yesterday's 2DAY extravaganza, other than to say that I had stopped listening by 09:15 and didn't go back to Radio 2 until 8am this morning. I did monitor the comments on Live Chat, and to me they seemed to be about 30% in favour and 70% against, although the in favour vote increased as the day went on. I wonder if this was because more and more listeners had moved away from Radio 2. I have no doubt the person responsible for 2DAY will have done some in-depth research in to listening figures and patterns, and will now be justifying their continued BBC employment to whoever will listen. Those of us that don't work for the BBC will never know for sure whether 2DAY was an unqualified success, an unmitigated disaster, or just a self-indulgent "look at how good we are" exercise.

 

The old saying rings true: If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

 

One unexpected result of 2DAY was a significant rise in my blog readership, and enough to push it over 3900 page views. See the attached graph. The spike on the 17th June coincided with the revelation of the Panorama "fake film" story ... that you didn't discuss.

The other attachment shows the Search Keywords that people have used and found my blog and it includes three references to Panorama. "jeremy vine biased" is an interesting one, what can they be thinking?

 

Anyway, you're in Iceland today, which is nice for you and your team. There is nothing like a company "jolly" from time to time, is there? Especially when we licence fee payers are funding it. So let's look at the value-for-money we will be treated to today in the five (yes, five) chosen topics::

 

1) FINANCE - Jeremy will visit Reykjavik's financial district - the scene of an extraordinary boom and bust - and grill the country's finance minister on when British councils and charities will get their money back from Iceland's failed banks. He'll look at how Iceland's people are coping with the aftermath of the crash. Jeremy talks to journalist Robert Jackson, Steingrímur Sigfússon; Iceland’s Minister for Finance, Sveinn Valfells' from ‘Advice’ group and Lisa Bjork; Mum of three from Kopavogur : On the advice of Martin Lewis (yes, that Martin Lewis) I invested a significant sum with Kaupthing but fortunately took it out before they got in to trouble. I understand that unemployment is a problem there, so I wonder if any of the women have ever thought about getting a job in a strip club? Oh, hang on...

 

2) STRIP CLUB BAN - Iceland is the most feminist country on the planet, according to the World Economic Forum. And it's just banned strip clubs - is that a good idea? Jeremy talks to Katrín Anna Guðmundsdóttir; Equality Definer and Venetia Thompson; Journalist and former city broker : Is it a good idea? I have no idea. I guess it all depends on how good they were. But then I have never been to an Icelandic strip club, or any other strip club for that matter. Next...

3) WHALING - Iceland argues that its commercial whaling is essential to the economy and it's a sustainable way to manage fish stocks. Jeremy talks to Tomas Heidar, Iceland’s Whaling Commissioner and John Gummer; Former Conservative minister and now Lord Deben : I can see no justification for the killing of whales by any country. It sickens me that this still goes on. Iceland, Norway and Japan should hang their heads in shame. Next...

4) VOLCANO - Jeremy checks out the volcanic activity that caused so many problems for air travellers last year. He talks to Professor Pall Einarsson; Professor of Geophysics at the University of Iceland : Has he fixed it then? No? Oh dear. Next...

5) SCOTLAND AND ICELAND - And Jeremy asks if Scotland should be more like Iceland. He talks to Angus MacNeil, Scottish National Party MP for the Western Isles and Anne McGuire; Labour MP for Stirling : Hmmm... Scotland with active volcanoes and geysers, now that would be something to see. However, I'm not sure what the operators of Glasgow and Edinburgh airports would think about it.

 

Sorry, but nothing here of interest to me today, so I won't be listening. And I can't stand Bjork.

 

I wonder if I can obtain details of the costs of your Icelandic trip under a Freedom of Information request...