Reposted, via The Guardian
The chief executive of Ofcom, Sharon White, has said broadcasters have to do more to represent the diverse nature of Britain today and not the country of “20, 30, or 40 years ago”.
White said reflecting the nation back to itself was important for the UK’s cultural wellbeing and part of a “compact” between broadcasters and the public. The lack of diversity both on and behind the screen of UK broadcasters has been the focus of campaigners including actor and writer Lenny Henry, with the BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Sky pledging to improve the representation of black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) people.
White said it was really important that society is reflected back in the programming.
“If you look at diversity, 10, 15 years ago our ethnic diversity was four, five, six, 7% [of the population]. It’s almost doubled, and, if you look at data for cities, even beyond that,” she told the Royal Television Society convention in Cambridge on Thursday. “We are becoming a different country and the media, all of us, have got a great opportunity to demonstrate society as it is today, not as it was 20, 30 or 40 years ago. One of the handful of the areas where the [public service broadcasting] system is wanting is around reflecting ourselves at a point when you have got devolution and an increasingly multicultural society.”
She said it was a similar point for people in Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and those of ethnic minority backgrounds.
“The issue is not just about programming, it’s about programming in a non-stereotypical way, where you feel you are reflecting back mainstream, almost colourblind casting. I think that’s incredibly important. It’s not just ticking a box that programmes genuinely reflect back in a way that is credible and people feel satisfied with,” she said.
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