The BBC


The myth of a public service


Tom Mills, Verso Books, 272 pages, £16.99, hardback


Is the BBC really independent? It may be one of Britain’s most loved and most important institutions, but it is also one that is subject to many misconceptions. 


Author Tom Mills sets about dismantling these comforting myths. He argues that claims of the BBC’s independence and impartiality — and even of a liberal or left bias — don’t stack up and that the BBC gives us news that projects the voice of the Establishment. 


So in 1926, for example, the corporation stood against the workers during the General Strike. And it has continued to play down the perspectives of opponents of the status quo, including the miners in 1984 and anti-war protesters in 2003. 


Since the 1990s, the BBC has been integrated into the market, while what independence it has from government and big business has steadily been eroded. In 2015, the Tories launched a review into how the BBC operates, potentially paving the way for its breakup. 


This is a timely examination of a public institution that is constantly under threat.

Reviews contributed by the Bookmarks socialist bookshop. 


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