Charlotte Henry is a journalist and broadcaster who creates and runs The Addition newsletter and podcast; an award-winning publication looking at the crossover between media and technology.
Lisa Nandy's Nonsense on Streaming and Diversity
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Welcome to The Addition, where I cover the crossover between culture, media and sport. A couple of weeks ago, I wrote about the need for the WSL to get more competitive if it is going to maintain media interest. This weekend was very illustrative. The managers like to emphasise how difficult the league is. Tottenham's Robert Vilahamn called the WSL "crazy competitive" in a press conference on Friday. Chelsea boss Sonia Bompastor has said similar. However, only Vilahamn's team ended up in a close game on Sunday, beating Everton 2-1. All the top sides won by significant margins, as did West Ham against relegation-threatened Crystal Palace. Home fans at the Arsenal game, where the Gunners cruised past Aston Villa 4-1, started to leave early as it was so easy for their team. That is perhaps understandable given how cold it was at the Emirates Stadium and how uncompetitive the game had become, but if the league itself doesn't get more jeopardy, TV audiences will go the same way. Lisa Nandy Thinks Streaming is "Atomising"New British Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport Lisa Nandy made her first appearance in front of the House of Commons committee that scrutinises her department today. Ahead of that, told The Guardian that British TV has a “major problem” with diversity and that this was driving people to streaming services. “We’re seeing people leaving TV to go to either streaming [services] or online and that in itself is really dangerous, not just for the TV industry but for the country, because it’s atomising,” she said. The culture secretary added: I really think that TV won’t survive unless it addresses this question. She is undoubtedly right that the TV industry is too middle-class and white. The stats are not wholly reliable, but they are illustrative. And shocking. Just 8% in the TV industry define themselves as working class, while a shameful 3% of TV directors come from a black background. Furthermore, streaming services and the broader online ecosystem do undoubtedly have the capacity to offer more varied content. This is all part of a serious conversation that the creative industries should be having. However, the idea that diversity is what is killing TV is, quite frankly, nonsense. Take out a paid subscription to read more of my take on Nandy's nonsense.
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The Addition
Charlotte Henry is a journalist and broadcaster who creates and runs The Addition newsletter and podcast; an award-winning publication looking at the crossover between media and technology.
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