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Journalists accuse BBC of cronyism

JOURNALISTS accused BBC bosses of undermining flagship news programmes yesterday by pushing through a culture of “cronyism” where jobs are doled out via “coffee with pals.”

The National Union of Journalists (NUJ) — which will join media union Bectu in industrial action over pay from next Wednesday — said managers were pushing through “cultural change” by shedding 415 jobs while creating 195 posts that forced-out workers will not be able to apply for.

The accusation comes as a TV news big-hitter warned cuts were undermining the BBC’s role as a check on the corridors of power. Channel 4 correspondent Michael Crick — formerly political editor of BBC2’s Newsnight — wrote on Twitter that “crooked, corrupt & incompetent people in positions of power can rest more easily that BBC now less able to hold them to account.”

The World Service is set to take the biggest hit with the loss of 105 jobs. Further cuts will be made to Newsnight and Panorama budgets, and dozens of newsroom posts will be scrapped.

BBC director of news and current affairs James Harding, who is pushing through the cuts, claims the corporation will save £48 million.

NUJ general secretary Michelle Stanistreet said: “These cuts will further undermine the ability of journalists to deliver quality content.

“Now they plan to get rid of hundreds of staff — using licence-fee payers’ money to cover the redundancy payouts — and then immediately hire in a load more. You couldn’t make it up. The NUJ has put in a huge effort, alongside our sister unions, to ensure that the BBC redeployment system works fairly and efficiently.

“Today’s announcement makes it clear that the BBC wants to unpick this work.”

Ahead of next week’s strike, a radio journalist who has left the BBC in the past few weeks told the Star the news division’s crisis was at explosion point.

“The BBC has gone through a decade of cuts,” he said. “Everyone at the front line of delivering news is being paid less and crushed almost out of existence — while at at the same time managers exist to do absolutely nothing.

“If Mr Harding wants to go through with these cuts, the BBC will before long not exist in the way we know it.”

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