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Michael Savage

@michaelsavage.bsky.social

29K followers 706 following 999 posts

Media Editor for @theguardian.com. Likes ≠ endorsements, obv. Story? 👇👇👇 Michael.savage@theguardian.com Need a secure way to contact me? Signal username: word_builder.20

Posts Replies Media

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 36m

NEW: UK ‘an outlier in Europe’ for letting Farage & other politicians present TV shows Vast majority of 37 other European nations directly/indirectly stop politicians presenting news/current affairs. Study again challenges UK's TV impartiality rules. www.theguardian.com/media/2026/o...

theguardian.com

UK ‘an outlier in Europe’ for letting Farage and other politicians present TV shows

Analysis of countries’ broadcasting rules confirms Ofcom code is highly unusual, amid concerns about impartiality

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 15h

NEW: Lisa Nandy ‘minded to intervene’ in Sky’s £1.6bn purchase of ITV Given the huge pressure TV is under, no one can see the deal being blocked, but Nandy did get some guarantees over content by intervening in the Paramount/WBD deal. www.theguardian.com/business/202...

theguardian.com

Lisa Nandy ‘minded to intervene’ in Sky’s £1.6bn purchase of ITV

Culture secretary’s move paves way for deeper scrutiny of deal that would create UK’s biggest commercial broadcaster

Reposted by Michael Savage

Tom Garry @tomjgarry.bsky.social · 16h

Exclusive @sport.theguardian.com story: Alex Scott has left her role as a presenter of the Women’s Champions League coverage on Disney+. It is understood it was Scott’s decision to walk away and focus on other projects. #UWCL www.theguardian.com/football/202...

theguardian.com

Alex Scott quits Disney+ role as Women’s Champions League presenter

Disney+ has paid tribute to Alex Scott’s contribution after the presenter decided to walk away to focus on other projects

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 19h

BBC News is go on YouTube - a big focus of new news chief, Rachel Jupp. There's a weird paradox here of making more content for people who don't actually have to pay a licence fee to view it* (*future funding talks could change this) www.youtube.com/watch?v=PmmE...

Watch BBC News Live

YouTube video by BBC News

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 19h

yes, lots to unpack here

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 20h

Great to see @jim.londoncentric.media's London Centric at 5.5k paid subs. Now has a three-person team & £300k-£400k annual revenue. Lots going on suddenly in local news & a lot of that down to the back to basics energy brought by likes of @londoncentric.media pressgazette.co.uk/newsletters/...

pressgazette.co.uk

London Centric hits 5,500 paid subscribers two years after Substack launch

Jim Waterson’s London Centric Substack has grown to 5,500 paid subscribers and 42,000 free susbcribers since launching two years ago.

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 21h

One of the Archers is against the plan to move The Archers out of Birmingham and cancel its new studio. Ben Norris, who plays Ben Archer, spoke to the Guardian about a decision he says has real practical, cultural and geographical problems. www.theguardian.com/media/2026/o...

theguardian.com

The Archers cast ‘angry’ at BBC decision to scrap new Birmingham studio

Ben Norris says cost-cutting measure that means show will be recorded outside its home city risks ‘extraordinary burden’ for crew

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 14/10/2026

This is one of the problems the BBC will face as it tries to cut/modernise - a load of different campaigns to save various things and reverse decisions. Messing with Archers fans is, ahem, brave…

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 14/10/2026

NEW: Cast member of The Archers reveals its actors are angry about BBC decision to axe show’s new studio, moving recording out of Birmingham. Ben Norris, who plays Ben Archer, raised practical/cultural issues. Warns it will put huge burden on crew www.theguardian.com/media/2026/o...

theguardian.com

The Archers cast ‘angry’ at BBC decision to scrap new Birmingham studio

Ben Norris says cost-cutting measure that means show will be recorded outside its home city risks ‘extraordinary burden’ for crew

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 14/10/2026

NEW: Sir Trevor Phillips encouraged CBS News colleagues to tell critics to ‘fuck off’ Scoop by my top colleague @jeremymbarr www.theguardian.com/media/2026/o...

theguardian.com

Sir Trevor Phillips encouraged CBS News colleagues to tell critics to ‘fuck off’

Phillips sought to buck up his fellow London bureau colleagues during a contentious staff meeting on Tuesday

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 14/10/2026

TikTok and Instagram have never wanted me to follow anyone like they want me to follow Hannah Fry

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 13/10/2026

NEW: The Traitors producers are delighting in its rare status as mass appeal TV. Its secret? Key quote for me comes from Jonathan Glazier, ex-BBC: “Don’t you think if we knew, every show would be a Traitors?” When it comes to hits, no one really knows. www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio...

theguardian.com

‘Universal appeal’: Celebrity Traitors producer reveals secrets to its success

Over 10m people have tuned in for episodes of new season of BBC hit as mass TV audiences become increasingly rare

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 11/10/2026

NEW: The job for Rachel Jupp, new boss of BBC News, is to resolve a debate raging in New Broadcasting House. Can the BBC go properly digital without becoming “a value-free click factory”? & all amid big cuts. The inside story on the state of BBC News: www.theguardian.com/media/2026/o...

theguardian.com

‘Restore the authority’: the challenge for the BBC’s new director of news

Rachel Jupp takes role as corporation grapples with digital transformation, a cash crisis and its public service role

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 10/10/2026

NEW: The new owner of the Telegraph is preparing to make significant job cuts to its newsroom. A proposal before owners Axel Springer could see scores of jobs go. Insiders confused after pledges of investment and an end to uncertainty at the titles. www.theguardian.com/media/2026/o...

theguardian.com

Telegraph owner poised to make newsroom job cuts in investment promise U-turn

Exclusive: German media group Axel Springer said to be planning between 50 and 100 editorial redundancies

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

Cohen & James said: “Our greatest fear has been for our son’s future. We have worried about the day he goes to school and other children find these false allegations online. We have worried about what he might read about his dads, what his friends might say and what that could do to him."

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

NEW: A big admission by the BBC in court today that stories accusing the couple behind PinkNews of sexual misconduct were false and defamatory. The stories meant they faced extra checks from a social worker ahead of a standard hearing about their son. www.theguardian.com/media/2026/o...

theguardian.com

BBC pays compensation to PinkNews couple over false sexual misconduct allegations

Broadcaster apologises after admitting claims against Benjamin Cohen and Anthony James were defamatory

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

NEW: BBC cuts latest... OUT - Long-running consumer affairs show You and Yours. IN - tech and discussion podcasts. The order has gone out from Matt Brittin - don't make content that only works on one platform. Another grim day at the beeb. www.theguardian.com/media/2026/o...

theguardian.com

BBC axes long-running Radio 4 show You and Yours in push towards podcasts

Thinking Allowed, The Artificial Human and Free Thinking among other programmes hit by £500m cuts

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

Christmas Pringles in my local Tesco two weeks ago. September. Game’s gone.

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

During the call, a version of the iPlayer was shown with an AI assistant called "Iggy", who you can ask for similar programmes or shows in other languages. It also featured BBC YouTube content and short-form video. Brittin, a Google guy, is very focussed on the iPlayer.

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

NEW: BBC staff told Matt Brittin today that junior staff were being laid off over “very bloated” senior ranks. It was raised so often on a staff call that the meeting chair, Anna Foster, said it was a theme. Brittin/his deputy said managers will be affected. www.theguardian.com/media/2026/o...

theguardian.com

BBC boss faces barrage of staff criticism over job cuts in junior ranks

Matt Brittin fields questions on whether executives are being spared and also lays out potential iPlayer overhaul

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

Jupp is highly regarded as a journalist, but what a task she faces. The BBC faces constant criticism over story selection & alleged bias from all quarters. Meanwhile, she will have to deal with the use of AI and the rising influence of short form video for news. A tough job.

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

NEW: BBC elevates one of its most trusted troubleshooters to oversee BBC News. Rachel Jupp will start in the role soon. BBC journalists had grown frustrated at delays/lack of direction. Her gargantuan task - trying to arrest the decline in trust in news www.theguardian.com/media/2026/o...

theguardian.com

Former Panorama editor Rachel Jupp appointed as head of BBC News

Appointment of experienced troubleshooter follows internal disquiet over delay in replacing Deborah Turness

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

💥 Karoline Leavitt, Trump’s former press secretary, joining Fox News. www.nytimes.com/2026/10/05/b...

Karoline Leavitt, Trump’s ‘Machine Gun,’ Has a New Gig at Fox News

A fierce and nimble speaker, Ms. Leavitt is the second of Mr. Trump’s former press secretaries to join the cable news network.

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

BBC staff are already wondering if another wave of cuts is coming next year, having been told about "waves" of savings. Thoughts again with staff affected this week - and announcements likely to leak into next week, too.

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

NEW: BBC morale dented by gradual ‘bloodletting’ after weeks of cut announcements. Gloomy staff fear another wave of cuts next year. BBC Three/BBC Scotland ARE expected to go online only. More staff meetings on cuts this week. A tough time for staff. www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...

theguardian.com

BBC morale dented by gradual ‘bloodletting’ after weeks of job cuts

Plans to shed as many as 2,000 employees have been announced in stages, and staff fear further cuts in 2027

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

Genius viral advertising by the Tories, whacking a few hacks into their tapestry. If there’s one thing we love talking about, it’s ourselves..!

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

NEW: How potholes and a garden gate led to Reform UK’s latest confrontation with local media. Reform effectively blocking a local democracy reporter in Derbyshire. Not its first skirmish with the local press following its local government successes. www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

theguardian.com

Reform UK-run council boycotts reporter after row over potholes

Derbyshire county council accused of ‘worst kind of double speak’ as it denies banning local democracy journalist but says it will ignore his inquiries

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

not sure I understand

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Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

NEW: Celebrity Traitors debut draws almost 9m viewers and more than half of TV audience - almost 3m MORE than last series. It got *83.5% share* of 16-34 age group watching TV in that time slot. The show provides an increasingly rare national TV moment. www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio...

theguardian.com

Celebrity Traitors debut draws almost 9m viewers and more than half of TV audience

Series opener had 3m more viewers than last year to see Claudia Winkleman select the first batch of traitors

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

OOF! Opening episode of Celebrity Traitors watched by nearly three million more viewers than the first episode of season one. Drew average audience of 8.9m viewers & 54.9% viewing share. Last year's Celeb Traitors drew an overnight average audience of 6.1m and 46.4% share.

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

Lawyers for David Sullivan have now filed a high court claim against the BBC, over its documentary alleging sexual misconduct. BBC now set to fight on two fronts, with the Trump case rumbling on in Florida. All while it negotiates over its own future. www.theguardian.com/media/2026/o...

theguardian.com

David Sullivan sues BBC for £150m over Panorama’s sexual misconduct claims

West Ham co-owner and former pornographer lodges high court claim over episode, in which several women accused him of abusing power

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

Running the BBC is hard - & god knows there are enough armchair director generals, but... Is anyone going to the BBC website for magazine-style features? If the BBC replaced them overnight with dispatches from its Rolls-Royce overseas reporting bureaus, would it be anything other than a win-win?

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

The BBC article quoted a beauty journalist who suggested bare nails: “...are often called elegant or tasteful and these are often usually euphemisms that perpetuate white supremacist standards of beauty.” Editors concluded there was no challenge to that view - or enough context

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 30/09/2026

NEW: The BBC has permanently pulled a story that linked a trend for bare nails with “white supremacist standards of beauty”. It had kicked off a US/UK backlash... Bosses have concluded the article did not meet editorial standards. Story: www.theguardian.com/media/2026/s...

theguardian.com

BBC article linking bare nails trend to ‘white supremacist standards of beauty’ removed

BBC says website article did not meet editorial standards after it attracts criticism from US and UK media

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

NEW: Jeremy Clarkson urges British broadcasters to merge as one "Britflix", as they struggle against streamers and YouTube. Says there are still senior TV producers he knows "draining away" from the industry as work dries up. TV: An unfashionable crisis www.theguardian.com/media/2026/s...

theguardian.com

British broadcasters should merge into single platform to survive, says Jeremy Clarkson

Clarkson’s Farm star says broadcasters should make ‘bigger, fewer, better programmes’ in face of competition from streamers and digital platforms

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Matt Brittin says he was sent a 50-minute, AI-generated episode of Doctor Who that was "pretty good". Says humans won't be replaced, but billions now have access to Hollywood-standard production tools.

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

NEW: Dale Vince plans a London-wide news site as he targets ‘rightwing bias’. He's putting cash into Camden New Journal, Islington Tribune and Westminster Extra - wants to expand Westminster edition to serve all London. Story feat. @jim.londoncentric.media www.theguardian.com/business/202...

theguardian.com

Dale Vince plans London-wide news operation to take on ‘rightwing bias’ in the media

Green energy entrepreneur plans rescue package for the group behind the Camden New Journal, Islington Tribune and Westminster Extra

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

When the BBC interviewed Harry Kane earlier this month, they did something a bit different. They sent their football tactics correspondent to quiz Kane on his deeper position. Part of BBC Sport's digital overhaul, but one dividing insiders. Story: www.theguardian.com/media/2026/s...

theguardian.com

BBC Sport’s digital revamp poses wider questions about purpose of the corporation

Some staff fear digital approach will pull BBC towards commercial model built around football, leaving minority sports and older TV viewers behind

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

NEW: BBC Sport boss Alex Kay-Jelski has pushed analysis, club fandom & YouTube. With more cuts this week, he now faces internal concerns of leaving some viewers behind. How BBC Sport found itself at the centre of a BBC identity crisis: WARNING: Nuance. www.theguardian.com/media/2026/s...

theguardian.com

BBC Sport’s digital revamp poses wider questions about purpose of the corporation

Some staff fear digital approach will pull BBC towards commercial model built around football, leaving minority sports and older TV viewers behind

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

💥

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

decent Chicken Shop Date episode tbf

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

Nothing has made me fear AI-powered extinction more than Nick Clegg saying not to worry about it

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

NEW: BBC warned it faces entering “doom loop” as it pushes ahead with cuts. Local specialist correspondent numbers cut. Local radio content dialled back. And more to come. No easy answers here, but Brittin said no salami slicing. All feels a bit salami-esque. www.theguardian.com/media/2026/s...

theguardian.com

BBC ‘risks entering inescapable doom spiral’ as further cuts hit TV and radio

Warning from union comes as corporation cuts local specialist correspondent roles as part of plan to save £500m

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

perhaps some characters? they will want to connect it to the original

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

NEW: The BBC is touting the return of Play School as an antidote to online slop aimed at kids - I know many parents who are looking for that. But in a world of global content, can it work? And does anyone under 40 have a clue what it is? Story: www.theguardian.com/media/2026/s...

theguardian.com

Ready to knock? Play School returns as BBC pushes quality children’s programming

TV heads hope the revamped show – back after four decades – will win over parents seeking quality shows amid concerns about addictive online content

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

NEW: BBC reducing the number of local specialist correspondent roles. Instead, each BBC region going down to two dedicated, multi-platform correspondents (generalists, not specialists). Will no doubt prompt concerns about reduced local knowledge and expertise. Story coming.

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

NEW: BBC to cut sports bulletins - more sport staff to go. Staff split on whether bosses moving too fast away from general (older) viewers in order to cater for very online sports fans. Morale low among staff. This is the first of many BBC cuts to come: www.theguardian.com/media/2026/s...

theguardian.com

BBC to axe sports bulletins on its news channel

Cuts are part of plan to save £500m and lose as many as 2,000 staff by 2028

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 21/09/2026

Some solidarity emerging among US broadcasters after several networks banned from the White House

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

Look at the orange line - that is the cash reserves of the public service arm, ie the BBC we all think of. Meanwhile, dividends from its commercial arm are very high - probably unsustainably so. Big question - is this bad management, media change, or both?

Michael Savage @michaelsavage.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

NEW: BBC has spent hundreds of millions of pounds of its cash reserves in a single year. Reserves fell 66% from £369m in 2025 to just £125m. When Matt Brittin said he wasn't aware of the extend of the BBC's problems, this is big part of what he meant. www.theguardian.com/media/2026/s...

theguardian.com

BBC cash reserves hit lowest level in a decade after big single-year spend

Exclusive: Reserves at public service arm drop 66% as broadcaster undertakes large cuts in effort to save £500m