On international TV coverage: “Outside the box”

Martin Scott of East Angla University, UK, has just published a 30-page report for the International Broadcasting Trust (IBT): “Outside the box. How UK broadcasters portrayed the wider world in 2010 and how international content can achieve greater impact with audiences.” The report can be downloaded from the IBT website, here.    

Some headline findings:

• A lack of any coverage of most of the Middle East and North Africa outside of news last year (no coverage of Libya / Tunisia / Saudi Arabia /Yemen …)
• Overall decline in international programming to the lowest level since IBT studies began 22 years ago.
• BBC1 having almost no new factual coverage of developing countries – and content migrating instead towards digital BBC channels – BBC1 has even less than ITV1
• Striking stability in the topics, countries, genres covered over time.

What would a similar study show in Denmark, Sweden …?