You are in > manchester.com  > News > Poll shows dented trust in BBC

Business

Poll shows dented trust in BBC

28/07/2007

The recent series of revelations over improperly-run phone-in competitions has caused a dramatic drop in public confidence in the BBC, according to a Guardian/ICM poll released today.

Fifty-nine per cent of those questioned claimed to trust the BBC less than they had before, with older people's confidence in the corporation hit especially hard.

The figure for those who claimed to have lost some faith in the BBC rose to 67 per cent among over-65s.

The survey of just over 1,000 viewers comes in the wake of several scandals that called into question the honesty of the public broadcaster.

As well as an admission that production teams produced fake quiz winners on shows such as Children in Need and Comic Relief after technical problems prevented genuine callers getting through to the studio, the BBC was forced to issue an apology to the Queen for misleading the public.

A trailer for a documentary on a year in the monarch's life was edited to suggest she stormed from a photo sitting when in reality she had not.

Fifty-eight per cent of respondents said they were just as sceptical of the BBC's output as that of its commercial rivals such as ITV and BSkyB.

Director-general Mark Thompson has called on the BBC to concentrate on regaining its reputation for transparency and authority and announced that staff would be sent on a training course to improve working practices.

© Adfero Ltd