Page 99 - An Introduction to Political Communication Second Edition

AN INTRODUCTION TO POLITICAL COMMUNICATION

was accused of plagiarism on air—and consciously sets out to
undermine their status and credibility. All these ‘bards’, while
distinct from the conventions of journalism, make an important
contribution to the public discourse of politics, exploring current
issues and concerns in a populist style which ‘straight’ broadcast
news must avoid.
British broadcasting, as has been described, is bound by strict
rules of impartiality, which inevitably constrain the extent to which
journalists can match the strongly opinionated pundits of the press.
They must be seen and heard to be scrupulously fair, balanced, and
neutral, at least with regard to constitutional politicians of the
mainstream party system. We have already noted the oft-made
criticism of broadcast news for its deviations from the ideal of
‘impartiality’, and the suggestion that in reality it contains a deep
structural bias towards the status quo. Our concern here, however,
is with the broadcasters’ tendency, and legally imposed responsibility
in the interests of a strong and healthy democracy, not to take sides
in political disputes.
One expression of this impartiality is the broadcasters’ role as
transmitters of political discourse. The press can report what a
politician says, but the broadcasters can transmit it live, in colour.
Despite the controversy which accompanied the first live broadcasts
of Parliament, on radio and then television, it has now become an
accepted component of the British political process (Hetherington et
al., 1990; Franklin, 1992). Live transmission remains, for essentially
commercial reasons, restricted to Prime Minister’s Question Time
and special occasions, but has gradually expanded (helped by Sky
News) into a range of ‘review’ programmes which give the interested
viewer and listener a more substantial overview of parliamentary
business.
In 1992 a consortium of British cable operators set up the
Parliamentary Channel, a non-profit service transmitting live coverage
of debates in the houses of Commons and Lords, the proceedings of
select committees, and sessions of the European parliament. The
service was taken over by the BBC in August 1998, and renamed
BBC Parliament. Although as yet watched only by a small number
of cable subscribers, it can be expected to expand its reach in the
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digital era ahead. Through this output the citizen encounters, in a
uniquely raw and unedited fashion, the process of political debate,
and may judge the performances of participants accordingly. Of
course, many of the truly important debates remain hidden from
public view, but when a government has only a small majority, as

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