Post by Teddy Bear on Mar 10, 2012 19:48:45 GMT
Daniel Hannan comments on the differences between the audiences for our Question Time, and that on the Australian version. Of course the answer to the question about why our audience is so left wing is that the BBC makes sure there will always be that majority, following the submission of any applicant who must identify their leanings.
What makes Question Time audiences so Left-wing?
By Daniel Hannan Politics Last updated: March 10th, 2012
The Australian version of BBC Question Time is called Q&A. As you can see from the above clip, filmed when I was in Sydney a couple of weeks ago, the two shows are remarkably similar in format and furniture. There are, though, two differences. First, Q&A is live, which allows for real-time interaction with electronic media. I'm not sure why QT doesn't do the same: one of the reasons it has avoided the slide in audience share that other current affairs programmes have suffered is that it was quick to understand the importance of Twitter; the hiatus before the broadcast drains much of the drama from the online debate.
Which leads to the second difference – a harder one to explain. While the Australian show's viewers are perhaps a touch more liberal and metropolitan than the general population, they don't exhibit anything like the Left-wing militancy of their British counterparts. This is true both of the studio audience (the Australian producers invite political parties and organisations to distribute places, rather than asking applicants to state their affiliation on a form); and, far more strikingly, of those following online.
The Internet is never a place to go for subtle and nuanced debate, of course, but something about the #bbcqt Twitter tag attracts trolls and sociopaths. It's especially noticeable if there is a Right-of-Centre woman on the panel. When Nadine Dorries was on recently, or Emma Boon from the TaxPayers' Alliance, they hadn't opened their mouths before a torrent of puerile, vicious, semi-pornographic abuse began. Here's something one doesn't expect to write very often: we should try to be as decorous and restrained as the Australians.
By Daniel Hannan Politics Last updated: March 10th, 2012
The Australian version of BBC Question Time is called Q&A. As you can see from the above clip, filmed when I was in Sydney a couple of weeks ago, the two shows are remarkably similar in format and furniture. There are, though, two differences. First, Q&A is live, which allows for real-time interaction with electronic media. I'm not sure why QT doesn't do the same: one of the reasons it has avoided the slide in audience share that other current affairs programmes have suffered is that it was quick to understand the importance of Twitter; the hiatus before the broadcast drains much of the drama from the online debate.
Which leads to the second difference – a harder one to explain. While the Australian show's viewers are perhaps a touch more liberal and metropolitan than the general population, they don't exhibit anything like the Left-wing militancy of their British counterparts. This is true both of the studio audience (the Australian producers invite political parties and organisations to distribute places, rather than asking applicants to state their affiliation on a form); and, far more strikingly, of those following online.
The Internet is never a place to go for subtle and nuanced debate, of course, but something about the #bbcqt Twitter tag attracts trolls and sociopaths. It's especially noticeable if there is a Right-of-Centre woman on the panel. When Nadine Dorries was on recently, or Emma Boon from the TaxPayers' Alliance, they hadn't opened their mouths before a torrent of puerile, vicious, semi-pornographic abuse began. Here's something one doesn't expect to write very often: we should try to be as decorous and restrained as the Australians.
, although I can understand why anyone would think so. They can however determine in advance what percentage of the audience adhere to a particular mindset by the questions one has to answer on the application form, and thus make sure there will always be a majority of left wingers. The production team select which questions are used by those the audience submit before the programme begins, and going on the current news events at the time, they are sure what is more likely to be submitted.