Matt Brittin, the BBC’s director general, has faced a barrage of accusations that frontline staff are being laid off instead of those from the “very bloated” senior ranks. In an all-staff call, Brittin conceded the BBC was “going to be smaller” but said it could still have a bigger impact. He said it needed to be “a bit more Elvis – a little less conversation, a little more action”.
Brittin also laid out a potential overhaul of the iPlayer platform that included AI-assisted recommendations. He said he wanted the public to think “iPlayer and chill”. However, with the call coming as the BBC continues to roll out details of a plan to cut as many as 2,000 jobs, many of the questions raised by staff alleged that executives were being spared at the expense of junior staff.
One staff member asked Brittin how the changes were affecting senior leadership, stating that the BBC was “an incredibly top-heavy organisation”. They added: “All the ‘doers’ are getting cut.” Another referenced a Guardian article this week about low morale at the BBC. There was also a series of criticisms over a decision for the BBC to reverse a promise of jobs made to a cohort of apprentices, who are now facing redundancy.
Brittin disputed that there was a general issue with morale across the organisation. I think we’ve got people who really are here for the purpose and mission of the BBC who are energetic and proud to work here.” There were so many similar questions that Anna Foster, the Radio 4 Today programme presenter who was hosting the staff meeting, summed them up by saying: “People are feeling that perhaps disproportionately … some of these cuts are landing on people who are more junior, and less so on people in managerial roles. So can you talk us through that?” Rhodri Talfan Davies, the deputy director general, said senior roles would also be affected by the staffing cuts.
I think when we look back at the changes that have been introduced, you’ll probably see that it’s at the most senior levels that some of the steeper reductions have happened.” BBC staff have reported feeling ground down as the cuts plans have been made gradually since the summer, with more announcements to come in the next few days. Cuts have been announced across news, local content, the media tech division and beyond. The Guardian understands the linear television channels BBC Three and BBC Scotland will go to help ease the BBC’s financial peril.
Brittin used the meeting to present possible new features on iPlayer. He has focused a lot of his early attention on overhauling the platform, which he believes has become significantly outdated despite having been pioneering when it was launched more than 20 years ago. During the meeting, a new AI feature known as “Iggy” was presented that can deliver recommended content.
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