‘What has the BBC ever done for us?’: ontological security and broadcasting in an online era

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Taylor-Camara, Ayesha (2024) ‘What has the BBC ever done for us?’: ontological security and broadcasting in an online era. PhD thesis, University of Nottingham.

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Abstract

To inform, educate, and entertain are the three guiding value principles that have shaped the BBC and its remit since its inception under Lord Reith, its founder and first Director-General. However, with a century-long existence, the BBC faces ongoing challenges to its perceived value and role within an ever-evolving media landscape characterised by technological innovation, the proliferation of online media services, and audience fragmentation. This thesis explores and redefines the value of the BBC within Britain by interrogating its ontological function within everyday life.

The industrial challenges encountered by the BBC have sparked academic, political, and industrial debates regarding its role and value. These debates often evaluate the BBC’s value through an economic lens focusing on creating and assessing ‘value for money’ for individual consumers or through a public value lens focusing on the benefits to British culture and society as a collective of individual citizens. Departing from these traditional economic and public value perspectives, this research proposes an alternative conceptual framework that considers the BBC’s value in relation to ontological security. Ontological security refers to the human need for confidence, comfort and consistency when dealing with everyday life’s unexpected and unpredictable circumstances. The conceptual framework developed in this thesis connects the BBC’s value to individuals’ sense of structure, stability, comfort, reassurance, belonging and identity through their media experiences.

Employing a case study approach, this research combines textual analysis of BBC and industry discourse with practitioner interviews to investigate how the value of the BBC is understood and constructed in an online media landscape. By focusing on three pivotal moments within the BBC’s current charter period, this study identifies the key social and cultural functions of the BBC and demonstrates that its value lies in its ability to sustain ontological security for British audiences.

The ontological security framework developed in this thesis contributes to media industry studies, offering an innovative way to understand the value of the BBC in an environment marked by online media fragmentation. By examining the complex dynamics between broadcasting, everyday life, and ontological security, this research deepens our comprehension of the BBC’s significance and provides useful insights for the future of public service broadcasting.

Item Type:

Thesis (University of Nottingham only) (PhD)

Supervisors:

Evans, Elizabeth
Pearson, Roberta

Keywords:

BBC, Ontological Security, Broadcasting, Media Industry Studies, Film and Television, Online Media, Public Service Broadcasting, Media Value

Subjects:

H Social sciences > HE Transportation and communications

Faculties/Schools:

UK Campuses > Faculty of Arts > School of Cultures, Languages and Area Studies

Related URLs:

URL	URL Type
http://www.ayeshataylor-camara.com	Author

Item ID:

77034

Depositing User:

Taylor-Camara, Ayesha

Date Deposited:

20 Jul 2024 04:40

Last Modified:

20 Jul 2024 04:40

URI:

https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/id/eprint/77034

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