Murdoch is like a redneck with an AK-47 shooting wildly into a herd of BBC elephants. “These slow good for nothing beasts! Stomp all the grass for my cattle! HAHAHA!! BANG! BANG!! Take that, Dumbo!”
But that’s all just opinions and metaphor. Numbers, let’s look at numbers. These put some perspective to Murdoch’s power grab.
BBC SKY
Cost (annual) £142.50 £216 - £582
Revenue £4.8bn £6bn
Original Programming / Services Life Planet Earth Top Gear Question Time Working Lunch This Week Lark Rise to Candleford The Mighty Boosh Have I Got News for You Time Horizon Doctor Who Today Programme World Service Ross Kemp on Gangs/Wars Mile High Footballers Wives BNP Wives
Employess 23,000 13,087
So to recap:
- Murdoch makes more money, has lower costs, and makes crappier programmes.
- The BBC is owned by the public and run in the public interest, creates plenty of creative employment opportunities, raises the statesman-like esteem of the UK internationally, and costs considerably less.
Hmm. Pipe down, James. Grow up and stop trying to undermine the value of what we have built so that you and your barrow-boy friends can pedal more mediocre banalities and stuff your already overflowing pockets with just that little bit more cash.
Sources: BBC HYS, Today Programme, 2 Mar 2010, Yahoo Finance