Television in Scotland mostly consists of UK-wide output, with some national variations, the level of which has varied in the past. Though there have been calls for such, Scotland still has no major television channel of its own. In particular, there have been claims that British television news does not cater to Scottish needs; Dr Douglas MacMillan, of the geography and environment department at the University of Aberdeen says he has found that Scottish news was "peripheral" compared with English stories. His six-month study into the BBC showed 34% of all news focused on England while just 2% was dedicated to Scotland, despite having 10% of the population.[1]
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Terrestrial channels
Viewers in Scotland receive four or five public terrestrial television stations. All of these are regional variants/opt-outs upon British television channels. In addition to the three Scottish stations, the country also receives two UK-wide channels, as well as a multitude of European digital and satellite stations: Channel 4, and Five, whose broadcast coverage is limited, and is often difficult or impossible to receive.
BBC Scotland
Scotland has its own BBC Scotland services, BBC One Scotland and BBC Two Scotland. Much of the output of BBC Scotland Television, such as news and current affairs programmes, and the Glasgow-based soap opera, River City, are intended for broadcast within Scotland, whilst others, such as drama and comedy programmes, aim at audiences throughout the UK and further afield. Sports coverage also differs, reflecting the fact that the country has its own football and rugby union leagues and national teams, separate from those of the other United Kingdom constituent nations and other sporting interests unique to Scotland, such as shinty or curling.
ITV in Scotland
Two ITV stations (STV and Border) also broadcast in Scotland. In the early 1960s, Grampian Television was created to provide commercial television services serving the Highlands and Islands, but in 1997 it was bought by STV Group plc, owners of the longer established STV. In May 2006, both channels were re-branded STV with newsrooms in Glasgow and Aberdeen retained to provide separate news services for their respective regions. Seven months later, STV launched news opt-outs for the East of Central Scotland (broadcast from Edinburgh) and Tayside & North East Fife (broadcast from Dundee). ITV Border has had a more complex position, as it also has to serve neighbouring areas across the border in England. Most of the independent television output equates to that transmitted in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, with the exception of news and current affairs, sport, cultural and Scottish Gaelic language programming.
The available ITV station depends on region:
- STV Central (formerly Scottish Television) which is based in Glasgow and covers the central belt of Scotland. It is owned and operated by STV Group plc, a company which evolved from the station, and since became solely interested in its core TV business once again.
- STV North (formerly Grampian Television) which is based in Aberdeen, and covers Tayside, the North East and Highlands and Islands. It is also owned & operated by STV Group plc, and carries the same regional programming as shown on STV Central but produces a separate regional news service.
- Border Television, which covers both the Scottish and English borderlands and the crown dependency of the Isle of Man. As of February 2009, the station broadcasts pan-regional news bulletins with ITV Tyne Tees from Gateshead with dedicated opt-out for the Border region broadcast on weekday evenings.
In Scottish Gaelic
- BBC Alba: general entertainment channel, news, documentaries, children's programmes, dramas, sport and films broadcasting on satellite in Scotland.
- TeleG: Freeview channel on DTT, broadcasting an hour a day of archive shows.
As well as these, the following channels also broadcast some Irish language programmes: STV, BBC One Scotland and BBC Two Scotland.
The Scottish Six
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One of the longest running controversies regarding news broadcasting in Scotland has been over proposals for an early evening, weekday BBC television news programme, containing international, UK and Scottish items, produced and edited in Scotland. This proposed show is referred to as the Scottish Six.[2][3][4]
In May 2006 Mark Thompson, the Director-general of the BBC, ruled out any prospect of a Scottish Six news bulletin to replace that produced in London.[5]
Personalities
References
- ^ Money, Rachelle (2005-10-16). "BBC evening news guilty of English 'bias' Research reignites calls". Sunday Herald. Archived from the original on 2005-10-16. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4156/is_20051016/ai_n15710310. Retrieved 2008-06-05.
- ^ "Dyke: I'll not let Labour politicians block Scottish Six". Sunday Herald. 2002-11-03. Archived from the original on 2002-11-03. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4156/is_20021103/ai_n12579881. Retrieved 2008-06-05.
- ^ "BBC News and the Scottish Six: Scottish Consumers' Views on Value for Money and the Licence Fee" (PDF). Scottish Consumer Council. March 2004. http://www.scotconsumer.org.uk/publications/reports/reports04/rp03bbcn.pdf#search=%22%22Scottish%20Six%22%22. Retrieved 2006-09-27.
- ^ "Survey supports BBC Scottish Six". BBC News. 2004-03-09. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/low/scotland/3544071.stm. Retrieved 2006-09-27.
- ^ Sheppard, Fergus (2006-06-29). "'Scottish Six' bulletin ruled out by BBC chief". The Scotsman. http://news.scotsman.com/scotland.cfm?id=792272006. Retrieved 2006-09-27.
See also
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