BBC Four & CBBC to close

[BBCMeridian]

...Consolidating the news channel and BBC World News (though preserving the ability for the UK to opt out) is hardly a surprise...

Cue weekly "BBC pays journalists and technicians MILLIONS to SIT AROUND DOING NOTHING WAITING FOR BREAKING NEWS" stories. To have the true ability to opt out any time, you still need a presenter, producer, entire gallery and studio crew, makeup artists, etc etc etc - as well as a maintained, functioning, turned on studio - on standby. You may as well utilise those resources to, err, broadcast a separate channel. Unless there will be UK focused opt outs at specific, regular times of the day - which still requires scheduled crews, talent and studios to be paid for, and reduces you ability to cover the news outside of those scheduled hours. 

...We watch lots of CBBC programmes - from Horrible Histories to Deadly 60 - but back-to-back on demand rather than on a curated channel. It's just the way the world works now and how media is consumed... 

How did you initially discover these shows, though? Through a trailer or watching them on linear TV to begin with? How would that happen if there is no "shop window" to tell you these shows exist when you're just starting to transition between CBeebies and CBBC content? 

To be honest, it would be hard, especially for me to imagine CBeebies without CBBC (on TV). If CBBC was merged with CBeebies, it would personally make more sense.

In what way does it make sense that at 4pm a 13 year old is forced to watch In The Night Garden or a 1 year old is forced to watch Blue Peter? 

...The changes to BBC News seem rational and will finally give it some certainty rather than the awkward kind-of-merging-but-trying-to-pretend-it-isn’t style they’ve been doing. I think it will be a better service for UK viewers...

You're a producer on this new super merged News Channel. On the same day as a mass elementary school shooting in the US, there is an unprecedented storm killing hundreds in India and the Prime Minister is ousted from his seat by his MPs after Partygate. Which story do you fill the next 3 hours with? How does that benefit both UK and international audiences? 

...this same [squeezing value for money] thought process needs to be made for every local radio station, every podcast, and anything that isn’t a core service. And if this sounds harsh - it’s what nearly every private company has to do. I’m really pleased that the person at the top seems to have this mindset too.

The BBC is essentially the only Public Service Broadcaster left in the UK. It should be doing things which get criticised for not being value for money. The value of their services shouldn't only be judged on how much audience it gets or how expensive it was, but on what cultural contribution it makes to society and how unique it is in the broadcasting landscape, balanced of course with the cost and reach. 

...if anything has to be cut, surely BBC Alba and BBC Scotland are more niche than something like CBBC?

Yes. But, as above, niche Is what the BBC as the last true PSB on the UK *should* be doing.

Radio 4 has such an excessively high budget compared to all other radio that it seems crazy it’s continually overlooked for cuts.

It has a very loyal listener base who would make the campaign to save 6 music seem small if major cuts were proposed.

Not even suggesting major cuts, I don’t think it should be immune from even small cuts the way it seems to be. A good start would be to simulcast World Service overnight

The World Service is already simulcast on R4 overnight. And I believe R4 is the most PSB thing the BBC does. This is a TV forum so I'll be brief, but can you tell me any other UK radio station which had a daily soap opera, or dramas, or comedy shows? What, do you think, is the reason for that?

You don't seem to know about history of the BBC as well, before 2002, there was only CBBC, merged and no CBeebies, and it probably would've stayed that way had it not been for Greg Dyke and Nigel Pickard.