BREAKFAST TELEVISION This note sets out basic

pmA,A
TELEVISION
BREAKFAST
This
will
note sets out basic
about breakfast
information
television
which
in the New Year - BBC on January 17; and TV-AM on
be introduced
The information
set out below are based on
and judgements
February
1.
meetings
held by Heads of Departmental
with the
Information Divisions
teams of the two programmes.
production
BBC
have now reached
B-L-4r
way for tl-e official
agreement
launch of breakfast
3.
from January
programming
with their trade unions cleari•ng ti
TV on January 17 after some pilot
The programme
"Breakfast Time" will be broad-
cast on Channel 1 five days a week (Monday to Friday) from 6.30 to 9.00am.
Th re will be full news bulletins'on the hour at 7, 8 and 9.00am; shorter
etins every half hour; and headlines
will be on bringing
on the quarter hour.
The emphasis
news and current affairs alive with interviews.
TV/AM
The commercial
Channel
version
3 from February
a week.
of breakfast
TV will be presented
by TV-AM on
1, going out for 3i hours - 6.-9.15am -
The first hour, to 7.00am, will be "Daybreak" - a news
programme
disseminating
information
as it comes in and updating
The rest of the programme
by minute.
it minute
"Good Morning Britain" will go out
and,as with BBC, will be very much on the lines olthe Americ=
The weekend programmes are likely to
breakfast TV news magazine format.
blihrnorerelaxed and to have more emphasis on children and sport.
from 7-9.15am
Audience
As many as 8-10m are thought
broadcast
period and some estimates
regularly.
- The competing
the available
audience.
will dip into breakfast
the audience
proportion
likely to see breakfast
is expected
of pensioners
suggest
TV over the
that 2-2.5m will watch
it
channels will aim to get at least 50'7 of
Viewers
The viewing public will not be static.
Initially,
television tor up to 20-30 minutes.
to be predominantly
young, thoull with a sizeable
among regular viewers.
-2--
S. 40k
Both programmes
and content.
have strikingly
similar
aims both in regard to style
They particularly. want to emulate
the success, as they see
it, of American breakfast
TV -
- of "setting
for the day, especially
the agenda"
They will attempt to achieve
which has been repeated in Australia
for political
this by a combination
a fast moving,
up-to-the-minute
as they emerge
and taking
programme
discussion.
of two things:'
developing
further those appearing
news stories
in the. morning
newspapers;
an easy, relaxed,
personal
approach by their teams of presenters
who are likely to work in pairs - Frank Bough, Selena Scott and
Nick Ross
in the case of BBC; and-David Frost, Michael Parkinson,
Anna Ford, Angela
Both will cover
410
aiming for shorter
6 minutes.
Rippon
and Robert Kee in the case of TV-AM.
news and conduct
interviews
They will
interviews
of 3-4 minutes
in their studios
recordings
equipment.
by ENG "doorstep"
from wider
compared with TV-AM's
go for live rather than recorded material
interviews with participants
newsreel
concisely, with the BBC
BBC,
and for
rather than through
Neither
intends to pad out with
ITV or US sources.
In short, each programme
intends
early start for their staffs
to do its owm thing.
and for Ministers
This means
an
and officials.
Facilities
BBC will have at its disposal
ll therefore be much the
A
This superiority is likely
to its programmes.
Space
re0.ocalBBC TVstations
-
regional network
the full back up of its organisation.
better
equipped both regionally
to be reflected
in the regional
is being made available
to insert
of studios
will be available
and in London.
contribution
in its programme
local news and weather.
It
for
The existing-
apart from Nottingham,
Bangor
and Aberdeen.
TV-AM will have studios
be able to feed material
in Cardiff,
for politicians
to po to their studios
and Glasgow.
down the line to its-London
Both prograrlmes hope that breakfast
important platform
Manchester
studios.
TV will quickly establish
in order to persuade
for interviews
It will
- Lime Crove(BBC)
an
them - and others and Car-den (TV--
will
S' -dio interviews
ava
invariably
_able to BBC) and ENG/studio
be preferred
"doorstep"
to Norman Shaw (only
vans.
to go to Lime Grove, BBC is providing a
new studio in the same building for the BBC Radio 4 "Today" programhie.
By offering two interviews for one trip it is hoping to make BBC breakfast
TV particularly worthwhile for Ministers seeking to put over a point of
As
an
to people
"incentive"
view.
Staff
- who are the key to the operation
Apa.,_ from their presenters
conduct
the cement and continuity but will also
ot merely provide
they will
interviews
beca-_:_Fe.
- each programme
will have its own dedicated
staff._
TV will have its own news reporters but will make full
of the existing BBC Parliamentary reporting team. TV-AM regards
itself as an integral and separate news gathering programme and is
establishing a team for that purpose, including a correspondent in
BBC breakfast
Alo
Ireland, based in Belfast.
It will have a political
editor in the Lobby.
Analysis
Breakfast
quantity
TV is .an unknown
expectations
of those employed
the approach
of the' launch.
on
in it seem to have been scaled,down
But it is predicted
The
future.
with
to have a lasting impact
way of life and to attract cumulatively a sizeable
particularly among the young and retired and in the regions
the British
audience,
outside London where
because
110
Breakfast
and
and has an uncertain
people
there is potentially
a more leisurely
start to the
live closer to their work.
aiming to influence the day's thinking
- to set out the day's agenda - even though it will attract
TV is deliberately
discussion
The timing of its launch is politically
This opportune since we are now in the run-up to a General Election.
and TV-AM's need to make a profit, starting at the bottom of a deep
only a minority
recession
- will intensilv
newspapers,
Channels.
audience.
competition
radio and TV and between
in the media not merely between
radio and TV but also between
TV
-4-
There will be considerable pressure on Ministers to appear on
TV and the timing and requirements of TV, as distinct from the
bre,fast
But
other media, will impose new and possibly unwelcome demands on them.
and
given the ambitions of breakfast TV to set the agenda for the day,
in
the attraction this is likely to have for pressure groups and zealots
of life, it will be important
voice does not go by default.
all walks
to ensure that the Government's
TV is also likely to increase the coverage of ParliamenL
unities
after 10.00pm and consequently to provide more broadcasting opp-ort
for backbenchers.
Breakfast broadcasting poses particular difficulties of balance
Breakfast
TV will
of the transient and changing nature of the audience.
same
seek to maintain it over a period though not necessarily within the
try to concentrate Ministerial
Information staffs will
programme.
because
in what is expected
•earances
of 7.30-8.30am.
to be the peak breakfast
viewing period
It is too early in advance of any experience of breakfast TV to
and
consider whether there might be advantage in gearing publications
medium.
news which can reasonably be announced outside Parliament to this
The possibility will however be kept under review.
to plan 60-70% of any day's programme in advance' partly
because they may be more magazine oriented in approach than TV-AM's
But the force of any day's
concentration on news and its analysis.
out
programme will be in its treatment of immediate news issues as set
BBC hope
the morning newspapers or generated by events overnight
This emphasises the problem
10 st or in the United States.
Ministers early in the day for an appearance on breakfast
the
lines the importance of Ministers preparing to handle
_
in the Far
'
breakfast
of briefing
TV and underadvent of
TV with their officials.
are urged to discuss with their Inforh,ation Divisions their
approach to breakfast TV; the handling of requests for a Ministerial/
); and
Departmental view (which are being charmeled through press offices
is felt
the availability of informed and supportive Backbenchers when it
Ministers
that Ministers
cannot
or should not respond
to invitations.
usi
ons
the
Breakfast TV offers a new and potentially important opportunity to
Ministers will need to
Government to explain its policies and measures.
.
ensure that the Government's point of view does not go by default
Ministers
consultation
30 December
are urged to prepare
for the advent of breakfat
with their Infoimation
1982
staffs.
TV in early