Sky News

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Sky News
Ownership
OwnerBSkyB

Sky News is a British television News channel which started as part of the four channel Sky Television network in February 1989.[4] Its was derrived from the US CNN channel.[5] For the last year it has been second in ratings to in the UK to BBC News 24. Elsewhere in Europe, it competes mainly with BBC World, Euronews, Al-Jazeera English and CNN International. Sky News is owned by Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. Murdoch said of it in March 1992:

Taking nothing away from CNN, which has done an outstanding job, I would point out that Sky News, the Fox [his US television network] news service and the News Corporation's combined reach - which have together over three thousand journalists spread over every continent and every country - leave us with an army of newsgatherers second to none both with regard to their access to news and ability to bring news from anywhere into people's homes

The station broadcasts from Osterley, West London, employing around 50 on-screen staff (anchors, weather forecasters, correspondents and reporters) and over 500 behind-the-scenes. The station has eight bureaus outside the United Kingdom, however, shares many more with other News Corporation stations.

History

Sky News started broadcasting at 6pm on 5 February 1989.[6] The channel operated on a shoestring but quickly gained a reputation for journalistic integrity[citation needed]. Although the channel was reportedly run at a loss until 2002,[7] its award-winning journalism brought British Sky Broadcasting some much needed prestige[citation needed]. Many of the original presenting team from the 1980s launch remain at the channel today.

Sky News remained the only UK's 24 hour news service until the launch of BBC News 24 in November 1997, and the ITN News Channel (later the ITV News Channel) in August 2000 (however this closed down in December 2005.) In September 1999 the European Commission ruled against a complaint by Sky News which argued that the publicly funded BBC News 24 was unfair and illegal under EU law. The EC ruled that the television licence fee should be considered state aid but that such aid was justified due to the public service remit of the BBC and that it did not exceed actual costs of the channel.[citation needed]

File:Sky news centre.jpg
Eamonn Holmes and Lorna Dunkley wake up viewers to a brand new look Sky News on Monday, 24 October 2005 at 6am.

In March 2000 Sky News Active was launched, a then unique 24-hour interactive service providing headlines (and other services which ranged from weather, the top story of the day and showbiz) on demand. It proved popular[citation needed], and in late 2001/early 2002 it launched an 8-screen video news service, rather than just 4-screen.

Sky News Poll had also proved popular with a new question each day[citation needed]. It is now common for the question to change throughout the day according to news or developments. In March 2004 it was announced that Five News was to be produced by Sky News, as Sky had won a 5-year contract to supply news bulletins to the British terrestrial channel Five, taking over from ITN in January 2005[citation needed].

On 24 October 2005, Sky News was relaunched from a brand-new studio across the road at their Osterley site in West London. This replaced the old building which had been in use for almost 17 years since the channel's launch.[citation needed] Music and on screen graphics were heavily revised and for the first time in the channel's history it began broadcasting in Widescreen (16:9) EDTV format (except for Sky News International which remained 4:3). The new schedule included more programmes based around flagship news presenters such as Jeremy Thompson and Julie Etchingham, whilst still breaking news around the clock. In this respect, Sky News followed the examples of CNN and Fox News.[citation needed] Former US State Department Spokesperson James Rubin joined the channel at the relaunch to present an hour-long evening news show, World News Tonight, whilst popular British TV personality, Eamonn Holmes joined to present Sunrise. The relaunch was also a major technical move from traditional tape based studio operation to a Quantel server based system.

The relaunch was, however disasterous for the channel, and since October 2005 BBC News 24 has overtaken Sky News in the ratings. The relaunch was almost fully reversed in July 2006, with schedule re-shuffle. Sky news dropped the James Rubin's unpopular 'World News Tonight' and The Sky Report but 'Lunchtime Live with Kay Burley' remained in the schedule.[citation needed] The re-shuffle also saw 17 Sky staff, including presenters, leave the station[citation needed].

Perception

Sky News operates under the requirements of United Kingdom broadcasting regulations that require neutrality. Therefore the channel has a rolling scheudle of news, and limits (and balances) the amount of commentary.

The station has not been without controversy. In early 1994 Kelvin MacKenzie, former editor of The Sun newspaper, was appointed Managing Director of BSkyB. MacKenzie's proposed changes to Sky News lead to clashes with CEO Sam Chisholm and the head of Sky News, Ian Frykberg, who protested what they saw as an attempt to take its news values downmarket and concentrate on stories that would be more familiar to tabloid newspapers than its rivals at the BBC and ITN.[citation needed]

The main problems arose when it became clear that Frykberg, then head of News and Sport at BSkyB, wanted to take Sky News to a wider international audience. Frykberg outlined his intention to open 15 new Sky News bureaux around the world and make the channel a serious alternative to CNN. At the time, he was backed by Rupert Murdoch *.[8] There was also talk of the US CBS network acquiring a stake in Sky News, and the two launching a joint international news channel. Mackenzie, in contrast, wanted the channel to focus on more domestic and 'tabloid' stories. The most ferocious battle occurred when Mackenzie wanted Sky News to run an interview with Lady Bienvenida Buck, exposed by the News of the World as being the mistress of Chief of Defence staff Sir Peter Harding. Frykberg refused to air the interview and resigned shortly afterwards. The interview did not air on Sky News, and was instead shifted to Sky One.[9]

MacKenzie announced his resignation in August 1994.[9]

A 1993 report on public trust in news outlets ranked Sky News far below the more established TV networks and newspapers.[citation needed] However the station has undoubtedly got past this in its news coverage, to the point of being nominated for International Emmy Awards and a 2004 report listed Sky as second only to the BBC in terms of public trust in British news outlets.[citation needed]

Its coverage of the Louise Woodward trial in Boston, US, garnered the channel international attention. Capitalising on the live broadcasts from the courtroom, Sky News covered the trial as-it-happened, with constant live coverage, recalling CNN's rolling coverage of the O.J. Simpson murder case.[citation needed] After days of live courtroom television, Sky attempted to return to a more regular schedule, only to be inundated with complaints by viewers demanding that the trial return to the screens; Sky obliged.[citation needed] They also took the opportunity to rig up a huge television screen in a pub in Woodward's home village of Elton in Cheshire, with 24/7 coverage of the trial in progress. Villagers rallied round the screen, and Sky recorded their reactions to every detail of the trial. The channel came in for further criticism, with many accusing it of maintaining a pro-Louise Woodward stance, even after she was found guilty.[citation needed]

File:Kayburleytsunami.jpg
Kay Burley reporting from the tsunami zone

At the turn of the millennium, Sky began a process of expanding its international coverage, opening more overseas bureaux in Africa, Europe, and the far East. It won awards from the Royal Television Society, a BAFTA, and a nomination for an International Emmy Award for being the only major UK television network to feature live reports during the war in Kosovo.[citation needed]

Its coverage of the September 11, 2001 attacks brought more honours, and more recognition from BAFTA and the RTS.[citation needed] During the first week or so of the invasion of Afghanistan, Fox News substituted its late-night repeats of its own programming with a simulcast of Sky News. In 2002/3, its coverage of the Soham Murders in Cambridgeshire gave the channel yet more awards, and the British Academy award for news coverage.[citation needed] Later that year, its (also award-winning) coverage of the Iraq conflict saw it yet again steal a march on its rivals, with US networks CBS and Fox News carrying much of its coverage.[citation needed]

Coverage of the 7 July 2005 London bombings won the 2006 International Emmy award in the Breaking News category. The judges commended the channel's "fast and accurate" reporting.[10]

Sky News is facing increasing competition from BBC News 24, however the BBC Head of News, Peter Horrocks, admitted in November 2005 in a leaked email that it was Sky News that was the first port of call for 'key opinion formers', not the BBC.[11]

Reception

BBC News 24 and Sky News weekly reach June 05-Jan-07
BBC News 24 and Sky News weekly reach June 05-Jan-07

Sky News is free-to-air on the Astra 2 satellites carrying Sky Digital. It is also available on Freeview and analogue and digital cable.

Sky News is also shown internationally, and can often be seen in hotels as well as being offered by some cable providers as part of their English-language line-up. The main difference between the UK version and the international version is that the international feed does not include advertisements[citation needed], instead, written summaries of news, business & sports headlines, accompanied by different mixes of the normal Sky News theme music are shown. Also missing internationally are the clock and the scrolling headlines banner, whilst the picture is cropped to 4:3.

The international version is shown as free-to-air on Astra 1KR at 19.2E. It is also carried encrypted on a number of satellites for international reception - including but not limited to Hot Bird, Nilesat, Amos 1 and Intelsat 10-02. It is also usually carried on cable systems in Europe, particularly (but not only) in Northern Europe.

In late July, 2006, US-based satellite broadcaster DirecTV added several channels to their online guide that are apparently not available to viewers, including Sky News. It is not known presently whether or not Sky News will actually be made available to American viewers.

Programming

When elections, either national, or international take place, Sky edits its schedule to focus on them. Recent examples have been the UK General Elections of 2005, the Israeli Elections of 2006, and the US Mid-Term Elections of 2006. Sky also often shows long interviews. Recent examples of these have been Adam Boulton's exclusive half-hour interview with Al Gore. At the end of each year, in December and January of the new year, a series of special 'Year in Review' shows are shown which look back at memorable news stories from the past year.

Former Programmes

Reporters & Presenters

Present

Report

Bureaus

Bureaus in bold are Sky News bureaus, others are shared with other News Corporation networks.

United Kingdom

Worldwide

Identification and Strings

Sky News has a very recognizable introduction line which, like American television news, is said at the start of every hour of news by Bruce Hammal.[citation needed] In the past, the line was "Sky News, with presenter/s." After the October 2005 revamp of the channel, however either "Live from the Sky News Centre, this is <Programme name>, with <presenter/s>." or "This is <Programme name>, with <presenter/s>" [citation needed] was said at the start of each hour.

Sky News' slogan is "First for breaking news."[12]

Related channels

As well as the original UK version, there are a growing number of other "Sky News" channels, and additional News Corporation news channels. They share content and expertise, but differ in focus and presentation.[citation needed]

Former channels

In popular culture

* Film by 20th Century Fox, a News Corporation asset.

References

  1. ^ http://www.barb.co.uk/viewingsummary/monthreports.cfm?report=monthgmulti
  2. ^ "Freeview to lose Sky channels". 9 February 2007). {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  3. ^ "Sky to launch subscription competitor to Freeview". 9 February 2007). {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  4. ^ Chippindale, Peter and Franks, Suzanne (1991). Dished! The Rise and Fall of British Satellite Broadcasting. ISBN 067171077X.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  5. ^ Clarke, Neville and Riddell, Edwin (1992). The Sky Barons: The Men Who Control the Global Media. ISBN 0413636801.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  6. ^ Horsman, Mathew (1997). Sky High: The Inside Storuy of BSkyB. ISBN 0752811967.
  7. ^ "Touch down for Sky". BBC News. 2002-01-07. Retrieved 2007-01-29. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  8. ^ Ipsen, Erik (1994-03-12). "TV News Services Scramble to Compete With CNN : Racing to Inform the Global Village". International Herald Tribune. Retrieved 2007-01-29. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  9. ^ a b Horrie, Chris (1999). L?ve TV: Telebrats and Topless Darts. ISBN 0671015745.
  10. ^ "Sky News Wins 7/7 Award". Sky News. 2006-09-26. Retrieved 2007-01-29. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  11. ^ Robinson, James (2005-11-20). "BBC news admits 'opinion-formers' prefer Sky". The Observer. Retrieved 2007-01-29. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  12. ^ http://news.sky.com/skynews/rss/article/0,,30000-1-100,00.xml

External links

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