What the Privatisation of Channel 4 Would Mean for Media Diversity

In 2001 President George Bush famously addressed Congress, just ten days after the 9/11 attacks on the Twin Towers, and said 'You are either with us, or with the terrorists'. It was an oversimplification of geopolitics that with hindsight proved to be incredibly harmful - the consequences of which we are still untangling.

Complexity and difficult political decisions are rarely well served by reducing them to simple binaries.

Similarly when it comes to the UK’s complex media landscape I am tired of simple binaries.

In recent weeks all too often debates around the future of institutions such as the BBC, Channel 4, and even Ofcom, seem to boil down to either “support the status quo” or “support a radical transformation” (with right-wing, free market, political overtones).

Let’s be honest, for almost a decade I have been campaigning to change the status quo, from advocating for ring-fenced funds for diverse productions, to changing the structure of the media regulator Ofcom, to even overhauling the tax system surrounding film and television productions. 

And this is because the piecemeal policies that are all too often rolled out by the media industry have not been good enough. In terms of ethnic diversity there has been no significant progress once you factor in wider demographic changes in the general population.

Disability representation, both in front and behind the camera, still bumps along the bottom.  

Women are still massively underrepresented in key roles such as directing.

And, I haven’t even started to discuss intersectionality. 

There are good reasons why I am no fan of the status quo.

At the same time I recognise that invariably improvements to diversity and inclusion in the media industry have been due to deliberate and better regulation, not less.  The biggest advances in regional diversity for example have  been due to better definitions of “Out of London” imposed on them by the media regulator. And it is no coincidence that arguably the most impactful policy responses to the summer of Black Lives Matter protests came from the two most regulated and publicly accountable broadcasters; BBC and Channel 4.

I see real dangers to media diversity and inclusion if less public money is put into public service broadcasting - here I’m obviously thinking about the BBC. 

And I also see real dangers to media diversity and inclusion if broadcasters are more accountable to shareholders and driven by the profit motive than to creating a public good for the whole nation - here I am obviously thinking about the current privatisation debate swirling around Channel 4.

As a Black man I am all too sensitive of a history in which my community’s support is used to see off the worst excesses of policies that might harm us, but the remaining status quo is not changed as a result to help us either.

In the latest media storm I personally oppose calls for the privatisation of Channel 4 as I worry this will, over time, reduce regulatory oversight, and the channel’s management will be more concerned about increasing returns to shareholders than increasing programming for underserved audiences. But neither do I find common cause with the people opposing privatisation unless they can show me how they will change the status quo and find common cause with people from underrepresented groups to increase representation, diversity, inclusion and equity. 

(This blog post reflects my personal opinion and do not necessarily reflect any organisation I work with)