BBC finds its happy place inflicting latest round of self-harm | John Crace

"This was the BBC in its happiest of happy places. Sure the Beeb likes to do the news, but there is nothing it likes more than reporting on itself. The holy grail of its output. There are whole departments within the Beeb dedicated to making TV and radio programmes about other BBC TV and radio programmes. There can be no other organisation that subjects itself to quite so much self-analysis. Only a psychotherapist would be able to fully determine whether it is solipsism or self-hatred."

"So much so that it goes out of its way to recruit people whose sole job is to criticise it. Some who are even ideologically opposed to it. Would not be that bothered if it no longer existed. Or lost its licence fee. Not that anything would ever be said to this effect. Because all its critics are motivated solely by love. This hurts them so much more that it hurts the BBC. Really."

"Monday afternoon saw the latest round of self-harm as Samir Shah, BBC chair, Robbie Gibb, a member of the board, and Michael Prescott, a former adviser to its editorial guidelines and standards committee and author of a leaked memo that led to the resignations of Tim Davie, the director general, and Deborah Turness, head of news, gave evidence to the Commons culture committee."

The BBC engages in intense self-scrutiny, with dedicated departments producing programmes about its own TV and radio output and a culture that recruits internal critics, including ideological opponents. Some critics appear indifferent to the corporation’s survival or licence fee, yet are portrayed as motivated by love. A leaked memo by Michael Prescott triggered the resignations of director general Tim Davie and head of news Deborah Turness. Samir Shah, Robbie Gibb and Prescott gave evidence to the Commons culture committee, with Prescott presenting himself as mortified by the memo’s impact and asserting centrist, non-partisan intentions. The hearings were portrayed as a public spectacle of institutional self-analysis.

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