DONALDA MacKinnon has today announced that she will be stepping down from her role as director of BBC Scotland after four years in the role.
She told staff the time is right for her to leave after having launched the new BBC Scotland channel in February 2019.
But when she was first appointed as the new boss of BBC Scotland in 2016, MacKinnon told The National in an interview that she would “win back trust in the BBC”.
She said: “There is a significant number still in Scotland whose trust we lost, and I think there’s still a bit of work to be done in that regard. I think it’s part of my mission to try and address these perceptions which may have led to that loss of trust … We want to understand why people don’t trust us; we want to be able to explain what it is that we do more clearly perhaps.
READ MORE: We'll win back trust, vows new BBC Scotland chief Donalda MacKinnon
“There will be efforts taken particularly on my part and on the part of colleagues here to do a bit more of that.”
So after four years, did she manage to restore the trust of the people of Scotland?
Well … see for yourselves.
10. BBC's Labour leadership debate IGNORES only question asked on Scotland
The soon-to-be-axed Victoria Derbyshire show last month hosted a special debate which asked the question: "who should lead the Labour party?"
After more than an hour, the conversation finally got onto Scotland when Selma Rahman from Edinburgh was finally acknowledged – Derbyshire herself joked that she’d had her “hand up for 90 minutes” – but her question was ultimately ignored as the host moved on to another one.
9. Greens hit out at BBC Scotland over TV debate snub
At a time where the words "climate emergency" have been at the forefront of global discussion, BBC Scotland made the decision not to invite any Scottish Green representation to take part in their Scotland Leaders' Debate at the end of last year. The programme only included the SNP, Scottish Tories, Scottish Labour and the LibDems.
8. BBC Scotland’s Call Kaye repeatedly cuts off Remain voter
After Boris Johnson received permission from the Queen to prorogue Parliament, a Remain voter – Morag from Dundee – tried to explain why she was "terrified" about the suspension on radio programme Call Kaye.
However, host Kaye Adams barely let her finish a sentence, and even interrupted her to bring in Jack Montgomery, the Scottish spokesperson for Leave.EU – who proceeded to speak at length, uninterrupted, of course.
7. BBC blames sectarianism for not covering AUOB march
The broadcaster tried to defend its decision not to cover the All Under One Banner (AUOB) march and rally in Perth last September due to coverage elsewhere on an Irish unity march. An estimated 12,000 people turned out to the AUOB rally, but the BBC insisted that it was their "duty" to instead report on the two sectarian marches in Glasgow which occured on the same day.
6. The BBC doesn't report on individual polls? Here's 27 times they have
Last August, the BBC News website chose not to cover the Lord Ashcroft poll placing Yes at 52%. The BBC told us they don't report on individual polls in isolation – and then it was pointed out to us by Reddit user u/StevieTV that they do. And have. 27 times.
5. Experts say BBC ‘misleading’ people on Scotland’s NHS in open letter
An open letter was penned to the Beeb by a group of health professionals on its poor media coverage on Scotland's mental health services. They said that comments made by LibDem Christine Jardine on an episode of Debate Night "misrepresented" the country's emergency mental health crisis support.
4. BBC contacts Unionists for new debate show – but not Yes groups
Debate Night was peddled as a Scottish Question Time, but when it came to its debut, it emerged that the BBC had been contacting Unionist groups – and no Yes ones.
It became apparent that they had directed contacted Scotland in Union (SIU) to ask them to make their members aware of the application process to appear on the show, but failed to inform us of any pro-independence groups getting the same treatment.
3. Failed UKIP candidate Billy Mitchell claims he was personally invited on to Question Time
Who could forget "orange jacket man", AKA Billy Mitchell? The failed Ukip candidate somehow managed to appear on Question Time four times – more than most SNP politicians – and after eagle-eyed social media users spotted Mitchell on his fourth outing, he revealed that he had in fact been personally invited into the audience by producers who wanted more conservative representation. He also claimed that the BBC sent him “offers for tickets all the time”.
2. BBC forced to apologise over SNP logo gaffe on Newsnight
Despite the public outcry that arose from Orange Jacket Man-gate, the BBC then went on to display more signs of bias – literally display – in an episode of Newsnight, whereupon the "changing landscape of UK politics" was discussed. See below for the graphic that was used in the background:
There appears to be something seriously amiss with the backdrop graphics on @BBCNewsnight... can you tell what it is yet? pic.twitter.com/mt3y3I4aZx
— Erik Geddes (@erikgeddes) February 8, 2019
On the screen appeared logos for the Conservatives, Labour, LibDems, a huge Ukip logo and a Green Party one floating in on occasion. Despite being the third-biggest party in Westminster, and Ukip not even having any MPs, there was absolutely no sign of an SNP logo.
1. SNP demand answers on BBC pro-independence censorship
Back in 2018, the broadcaster was at the centre of a censorship scandal that did not actually even revolve around their own platforms.
Pro-independence blog Wings Over Scotland and fellow independence-supporting commentator Peter Curran had their YouTube channels suspended after complaints were placed by the BBC. Their lawyers tried to base the complaint on copyright infringement, but it was argued that the clips featured on both channels were covered by fair use exemptions to copyright law. They eventually backed down, – but not after outrage from the SNP and Alex Salmond. Oh, and they blamed it on a Labour councillor in the end.
So, hands up if you feel trust has indeed been restored during MacKinnon's reign?
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