4 ms·

Great article, easy to follow considering it's far away from my normal domain. I noticed they didn't mention any brands by name though, why is that?

tankenmate 9y ago
The BBC has a very strong product prominence policy[0] (i.e. avoid naming brands when possible), being government funded is a large driver of this policy. [0] http://www.bbc.co.uk/editorialguidelines/guidelines/editorial-integrity/product-prominence http://www.bbc.co.uk/editorialguidelines/guidelines/editoria... EDIT: fixed policy name and added link
- keypress 9y ago
  It's not Government funded. There's a mandatory TV tax (for TV viewers), the fee of which is set by Government.
  - tankenmate 9y ago
    You are right, but considering that until recently not paying your TV license was a crime in effect it is government funded; ultima ratio regum and all that...
    - Angostura 9y ago
      Stealing my car is a crime too. Today I learned my car is government funded.
      - tankenmate 9y ago
        Your argument is non sequitur. If others were required to pay for your car via legislation then you might have an argument.
      - barrkel 9y ago
        Property rights are a government-funded right, correct. The roads your drive on are almost certainly subsidised from beyond the direct taxes you pay on your car and fuel too.
  - fjsolwmv 9y ago
    "Taxes" are money paid to the government for use in government funded activities.
    - pbhjpbhj 9y ago
      So, you agree it is taxation? (Genuinely not clear to me, not trying to be snarky.) FWIW when I last researched the issue (maybe 3 years ago) there was also funding from direct taxation used for BBC activities; it was in the published accounts at least.
    - keypress 9y ago
      https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Television_licensing_in_the_United_Kingdom#Reclassification_as_a_tax https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Television_licensing_in_the_Un...
- anoother 9y ago
  It's a shame this is so selectively applied. See, for example: - The constant mention of speaking to people 'over Skype' on the News - Publicization of Twitter hashtags on Questiontime and other programs - Hours worth of Top Gear footage (and the entire Arctic Special) that were effectively Toyota Hilux advertisements
  - gaius 9y ago
    The constant favourable coverage of Google and Apple, always talking about hipster-friendly Flickr when boring old Photobucket was doing 20x the volume... they apply their rules very selectively....
    - fjsolwmv 9y ago
      Photobucket was for link sharing to other sites. , no? While flicker was a destination for publishing albums and browsing, with much higher quality photos.
      - gaius 9y ago
        That's imgur you're thinking of
  - arethuza 9y ago
    Isn't most of Top Gear about coverage of different automotive brands?
    - anoother 9y ago
      It is. I'm referring to: - A running gag that, iirc, covered multiple seasons, about the 'indestructibility' of a red 90s Toyota Hilux. Performing destructive stunts and then driving away with minimal/no repairs. No other cars were involved in this segment. - A special, hour-long episode involving a grueling trip to the pole in a fleet of brand new, red Toyota Hiluxes. Whichever way you look at it, this was fantastic advertising and brand reinforcement for Toyota.
  - 9y ago
dspillett 9y ago
> I noticed they didn't mention any brands by name though, why is that? As a public service broadcaster in the UK, the BBC must be very careful about naming specific brands and products due to rules laid out in their legal remit (and fear of legal action if from a party that feels unfairly disadvantaged by a competitor getting a good mention or them getting a bad one). This is way Blue Peter always use "sticky backed plastic" instead of "sellotape" or "scotch tape", and people on BBC shows "vacuum" where the common parlance is "to hoover" (hoover being a brand name that got verbed like Google -> to google).
- afandian 9y ago
  (This is almost too petty a point to reply, but "sticky backed plastic" is a sheet of adhesive transparent film, like you'd use to cover books. I think they probably would have said "sticky tape")
  - rjsw 9y ago
    The main UK brand of "sticky backed plastic" was Fablon.
  - laumars 9y ago
    I don't know why you are being downvoted because you are correct. I'd further your post and also point out the correct term to vacuum is still "vacuum". The BBC didn't invent that term like they did "sticky backed plastic". The radio is often quite amusing when there are guests on there who accidentally slip a brand name. Presenters often then reply with the same rehearsed quote: "Other brands of [cola] also exist."
  - bonaldi 9y ago
    They literally did say "sticky-backed plastic" for sellotape, which left me bemused as a nipper
    - dboreham 9y ago
      Especially bemused because that's not what they meant. SBP is Fablon or plastic film that comes in a wide (2+ ft) roll and is primarily used to cover books.
deleted 9y ago
[deleted]

tankenmate 9y ago

The BBC has a very strong product prominence policy[0] (i.e. avoid naming brands when possible), being government funded is a large driver of this policy. [0] http://www.bbc.co.uk/editorialguidelines/guidelines/editorial-integrity/product-prominence http://www.bbc.co.uk/editorialguidelines/guidelines/editoria... EDIT: fixed policy name and added link

keypress 9y ago
It's not Government funded. There's a mandatory TV tax (for TV viewers), the fee of which is set by Government.
- tankenmate 9y ago
  You are right, but considering that until recently not paying your TV license was a crime in effect it is government funded; ultima ratio regum and all that...
  - Angostura 9y ago
    Stealing my car is a crime too. Today I learned my car is government funded.
    - tankenmate 9y ago
      Your argument is non sequitur. If others were required to pay for your car via legislation then you might have an argument.
    - barrkel 9y ago
      Property rights are a government-funded right, correct. The roads your drive on are almost certainly subsidised from beyond the direct taxes you pay on your car and fuel too.
- fjsolwmv 9y ago
  "Taxes" are money paid to the government for use in government funded activities.
  - pbhjpbhj 9y ago
    So, you agree it is taxation? (Genuinely not clear to me, not trying to be snarky.) FWIW when I last researched the issue (maybe 3 years ago) there was also funding from direct taxation used for BBC activities; it was in the published accounts at least.
  - keypress 9y ago
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Television_licensing_in_the_United_Kingdom#Reclassification_as_a_tax https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Television_licensing_in_the_Un...
anoother 9y ago
It's a shame this is so selectively applied. See, for example: - The constant mention of speaking to people 'over Skype' on the News - Publicization of Twitter hashtags on Questiontime and other programs - Hours worth of Top Gear footage (and the entire Arctic Special) that were effectively Toyota Hilux advertisements
- gaius 9y ago
  The constant favourable coverage of Google and Apple, always talking about hipster-friendly Flickr when boring old Photobucket was doing 20x the volume... they apply their rules very selectively....
  - fjsolwmv 9y ago
    Photobucket was for link sharing to other sites. , no? While flicker was a destination for publishing albums and browsing, with much higher quality photos.
    - gaius 9y ago
      That's imgur you're thinking of
- arethuza 9y ago
  Isn't most of Top Gear about coverage of different automotive brands?
  - anoother 9y ago
    It is. I'm referring to: - A running gag that, iirc, covered multiple seasons, about the 'indestructibility' of a red 90s Toyota Hilux. Performing destructive stunts and then driving away with minimal/no repairs. No other cars were involved in this segment. - A special, hour-long episode involving a grueling trip to the pole in a fleet of brand new, red Toyota Hiluxes. Whichever way you look at it, this was fantastic advertising and brand reinforcement for Toyota.
- 9y ago

dspillett 9y ago

> I noticed they didn't mention any brands by name though, why is that? As a public service broadcaster in the UK, the BBC must be very careful about naming specific brands and products due to rules laid out in their legal remit (and fear of legal action if from a party that feels unfairly disadvantaged by a competitor getting a good mention or them getting a bad one). This is way Blue Peter always use "sticky backed plastic" instead of "sellotape" or "scotch tape", and people on BBC shows "vacuum" where the common parlance is "to hoover" (hoover being a brand name that got verbed like Google -> to google).

afandian 9y ago
(This is almost too petty a point to reply, but "sticky backed plastic" is a sheet of adhesive transparent film, like you'd use to cover books. I think they probably would have said "sticky tape")
- rjsw 9y ago
  The main UK brand of "sticky backed plastic" was Fablon.
- laumars 9y ago
  I don't know why you are being downvoted because you are correct. I'd further your post and also point out the correct term to vacuum is still "vacuum". The BBC didn't invent that term like they did "sticky backed plastic". The radio is often quite amusing when there are guests on there who accidentally slip a brand name. Presenters often then reply with the same rehearsed quote: "Other brands of [cola] also exist."
- bonaldi 9y ago
  They literally did say "sticky-backed plastic" for sellotape, which left me bemused as a nipper
  - dboreham 9y ago
    Especially bemused because that's not what they meant. SBP is Fablon or plastic film that comes in a wide (2+ ft) roll and is primarily used to cover books.

deleted 9y ago

[deleted]