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During 23 years with the BBC, and a 40 year journalistic career (when he was trained to use clear and simple language, avoiding jargon), our Editor, Welshman Phil Parry always believed that the label ‘BREAKING NEWS’ should only be employed rarely, but last week’s election results revealed a cascade of meaningless uses of the term, including Rishi Sunak being urged to ‘own’ the terrible news.
It’s getting ridiculous now and as a journalist for many years who was at the BBC for a long time, I feel I have a right to say so.
Last week’s elections saw any number of stories given as ‘BREAKING NEWS’, most of them undeserved.
The crowning glory came for me on Sunday with “Breaking News PM needs to own terrible election results and change course, former home secretary Suella Braverman tells BBC – follow live”.
I was always taught, though, that as a journalist the label should be used only sparingly and even then in just giving significant information.
The reason is that otherwise the stories will lose their value, and people might not bother to look at them, thinking: “Oh they say this all the time, but it doesn’t mean anything…”. Journalism is therefore seen as worthless by everybody.
Yet now you seem to see ANYTHING given as ‘BREAKING NEWS’, and the election stories only serve to underline this, because they come after a succession of absurd uses of the phrase.
They can’t do a ‘soft’ lunar landing, there is renewed violence in Ecuador, and a politician makes a completely vacuous comment on television, were all stories which have been offered as ‘BREAKING NEWS’.
Let’s take the first one initially, because it is fairly typical of this kind of nonsense. It is, I’m afraid, pretty tedious, but stay with me because, unfortunately, that is kind of the point! It was declared in the ‘report’: ‘A US lunar lander has “no chance” of making a soft landing on the Moon due to a fuel leak, the company behind the mission says. Pittsburgh-based Astrobotic said there was enough propellant to operate its Peregrine lander as a spacecraft’.
It was ‘BREAKING NEWS’ that Lord Cameron had said to the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg: “We are prepared to back our words with actions”, and on the same show, came further ‘BREAKING NEWS’ that Sir Keir Starmer had proclaimed he would consider supporting further action “on its merits”.
It was ‘BREAKING NEWS’ that armed men had broken into a television studio in Ecuador.
Meanwhile the BBC had ‘reported’ as well: “BREAKING NEWS Post Office boss Nick Read to face MP’s questions over scandal…”. That day we also had from them: BREAKING NEWS Fujitsu’s global chief executive tells BBC the firm is sorry…”.
The corporation gave us more ‘BREAKING NEWS’ one week declaring: “Oppenheimer leads Bafta Film Award nominations with 13…”.
Then there’s Royal news. The BBC published on the same day: “Breaking News: Prince William visits his wife Kate in hospital after she had abdominal surgery”.
But these are only a few examples, because there have been many more.
A completely bland statement from a company or anonymous ‘celebrity’ – ‘BREAKING NEWS’. A totally empty comment by a person in the headlines which gives NO new information whatsoever – ‘BREAKING NEWS‘. The result of, or evidence given in, a pretty standard court case – ‘BREAKING NEWS‘.
Another instance came as Vladimir Putin started a news conference, and I received an ‘urgent’ news update that his war aims were “unchanged”.
It was ‘BREAKING NEWS‘ supposedly, that: ‘Russian President Vladimir Putin has told Russians that peace with Ukraine will only take place “when we achieve our objectives”.
A few hours later we also had from the giant corporation as ‘BREAKING NEWS‘ – “LIVE ‘High probability’ Gaynor Lord went into Norwich river – police”. Sadly it was also ‘BREAKING NEWS‘ that a body was later found.
On that same day there was, too, the result of a court case in Scotland, which was reported, of course, as ‘BREAKING NEWS‘.
It was seemingly very important we were told that: “Two men and a woman have been found guilty of the murder of a schoolgirl in West Dunbartonshire more than 27 years ago. The ‘BREAKING NEWS’ report added excitedly: “The body of Caroline Glachan, 14, was discovered on the banks of the River Leven in Renton on 25 August 1996”.
But it isn’t just news – sports stories too can be ‘breaking’!
Recently we heard as ‘BREAKING NEWS’ from the BBC that Everton and Nottingham Forest had both been charged with breaching financial rules.
On the day of the Scottish story, we were also offered an ‘urgent’ sports update by them (as well as from other media outlets), about a woman referee taking charge of a football match.
Reporters stated as ‘BREAKING NEWS‘: “Rebecca Welch will become the first female referee for a Premier League fixture when she officiates Fulham’s match against Burnley on 23 December.
Two days later we were given as ‘BREAKING NEWS’ the latest information about the UK’s entry for Eurovision.
It was seemingly vitally important that we were told: “Pop star Olly Alexander will represent the United Kingdom at next year’s Eurovision Song Contest in Sweden”.
The ‘BREAKING NEWS‘ report continued excitedly: “The former Years and Years frontman will hope to improve on the UK’s disappointing performance this year, when Mae Muller came second to last”.
Perhaps I should try it. “BREAKING NEWS – I want a cup of tea and a biscuit”…
Details including the REAL stories Phil has covered in his long journalistic career, as he was gripped by the rare neurological condition Hereditary Spastic Paraplegia (HSP), have been released in a major book ‘A GOOD STORY’. Order it now!
Regrettably publication of another book, however, was refused, because it was to have included names.
Tomorrow – how during all those years (when he virtually NEVER used the term ‘BREAKING NEWS’), Phil has always fought to show there are MANY different types of journalism. For example his own type (investigative) is light years away from feature or sport reporting, and now comes news of a campaign to honour another sort from war reporters (many of whom have been killed doing their jobs).