BBC Soul Battle

if Tim David When he was scalded as a “fat cat” recently for a £75,000 raise, he flinched. British Broadcasting Corporation The Director General may now think that he should put a little more cream in his plate.

As a BBC star, his job is getting harder day by day reporterFrom the political editor Laura Kunsberg For North America editor Jon Sopel, Began a disorientated musical chair game, and the senior news director went to the exit door of the broadcaster with hundreds of experienced editorial colleagues.

Even Hugh Edwards, the host of “News of Ten”, has connections with rival broadcasters. If David listens to News Night, he will be reminded that it is looking for a new editor after Esme Wren announced on Tuesday that she would quit Channel 4 News.

The BBC Newsroom is saving £80 million and is laying off 475 employees and more than 250 employees in the “Modern News” program. There are tensions with the new Minister of Culture, Nadine Dorries, who is a critic of the BBC and warned that “real change” is needed if she is to survive. At the same time, it lost experienced figures such as technology reporter Rory Cellan-Jones and breakfast host Louise Minchin. David Schuckman ended his long term as a science editor at COP26 this week.

The resignation of BBC News Director Fran Unsworth (Fran Unsworth) in September has exacerbated this instability. After 40 years of professional career, she will leave in January, and the succession battle is underway.

David is 54 years old, an ultramarathon runner, a keen and energetic leader. He will oversee all major appointments. “He is very involved in the deployment of all outstanding screen talents-he is a hands-on DG,” said a BBC source. “There is a leadership vacuum in BBC News, and he needs to be.”

Kuenssberg is expected to step down at the end of this year. There is currently no obvious single role that matches her profile as a political editor. “They will have to strengthen her situation, so she has a lot of other things; documentaries and podcasts and other projects,” a source predicted. “You have to make a deal for Laura to keep her in her position.” The core of this equation is her interest in being a part-time host on Today’s show.

This brings problems. Some people on BBC Radio worry that today, BBC’s flagship product, if the acting role “is just randomly distributed to people as a prize for hard work, and then they can choose their own working hours”, then they will lose their identity today. Today, once famous for having two different lead hosts, it is now hosted by Nick Robinson, Justin Weber, Mishal Hussein, Martha Kearney, Amor Rajan and doubles Simon Jack and Sarah Smith , And possibly Kunsberg. “Broadcasting is about familiarity,” an insider said of this group of people. “What you don’t want is for other people to come to work part-time, think it’s not suitable for them, and then make trouble.”

None of the main presenters wanted to continue to free up shifts for Kuenssberg. “There is competition, and there is only one large interview at 8.10 in the morning, so there is quite a lot of anxiety,” said another source on the show. Due to the coincidence of Kuenssberg and Sopel’s departure, it is speculated that the North American editor will return to work in Westminster. A BBC reporter said that the 62-year-old Sopel used to be the host of a political show, “knows Westminster very well” and “is liked and respected internally”.

But this convenient transition is far from certain, even if Sopel is the gaming company’s favorite person to become the next BBC political editor. “He didn’t come back specifically to do this,” said a close colleague. “If they offered it to him, would he do it as a transition? He might.”

But despite the reputation of this outstanding broadcast journalist, “some editors believe he never left Washington. [and] Work together and stay in front of the White House,” said a person familiar with the matter. It is worth noting that Robert Moore of ITV defeated all his competitors and entered the mob that attacked the Capitol in January.

The imprint of BBC News caught off guard was highlighted in August because it did not have senior reporters in Kabul when Afghanistan fell into the hands of the Taliban, thus tarnishing its excellent coverage of Afghanistan. “We didn’t notice the ball,” a source said. “The BBC is taking time to deal with a very painful reorganization. This is not a good newsroom.”

Soppel’s possible successor in the United States is Sarah Smith, a successful Scottish editor and the daughter of former Labour Party leader John Smith.But when the BBC is negotiating its future, giving Kuenssberg the right to succeed is crucial to building public trust Doris.

The 45-year-old Kuenssberg is a whirlwind of reporting on TV, radio, podcasts and Twitter. She has created a more direct political news report for her 1.3 million fans. She is admired by peers in the journalism industry, who voted her as the journalist of the year in 2016 and is widely popular within the BBC. “You have never heard about her, but you have heard of some other people; it is difficult to work with them,” said Danny Shaw, a former BBC internal affairs correspondent.

Former BBC News Director Richard Sambrook said that during his tenure at Kuenssberg, the work of “Pol Ed” “becomes highly politicized.” “When Nick Robinson or Andrew Marr decided to move on, no one made a fuss, but Laura suddenly became a story, and I don’t think it helped.” He said that she “did very well under tremendous pressure.” Potential replacements for Kuenssberg include her deputy Vicki Young, Sky’s Beth Rigby, ITV’s Anushka Asthana and BBC’s Rajan media edit.

Former BBC host Mark Mardell believes that diversity will be a factor. “It’s like the next Doctor Who, if you give it to a middle-aged white man, you are declaring that you have a female political editor, and nothing more. The diversity has been completed and the dust has settled. It is not.”

At the same time, ordinary BBC staff continued to complain. The president of the National League of Journalists, Pierre Vicary, said that David’s salary increase was “like an absolute leading balloon”. Nevertheless, DG can rest assured that Edwards hopes to stay at the BBC. In a statement sent to the standard via email, he said: “I have never seriously considered any BBC actions that I have spent my entire career. I am very happy to show the top ten, breaking news, elections, State and ceremonial activities, and hope to continue to play this role when needed.”

David uses justice as the slogan, which will be the key to his future appointments. An insider said: “He is passionate about those who enthusiastically support his spirit of justice… He has turned it into something totem.”

Although some people worry that excessive emphasis on neutrality will weaken the BBC’s output, DG insists that his first task is to make the BBC closely related to every family in the UK. The danger is that without strong broadcast characters and unique programs, it will become so boring that viewers and talents will turn elsewhere.