Nor are they a newspaper editor, a TikTok influencer, or a podcaster. They are the anonymous on-shift editor of the BBC News app, making snap judgments on whether to make the phones of millions of people buzz with a breaking news push alert.
The BBC does not publish user numbers but external research suggests about 12.6 million people in Britain have its news app installed. BBC newsroom sources suggest the actual number is higher and about 60% of users are thought to have notifications enabled. This means that on a conservative estimate each push alert is reaching the phones of 7 million people in Britain - more than any other broadcast news bulletin in the UK.
Craig Oliver, who was David Cameron's No 10 communications chief from 2011 to 16, said that influencing the BBC's coverage was the main objective for all political press officers. This used to mean phoning editors of specific television news shows. Now the focus was shifting online.
"The sheer scale of the website alone and its breaking news alerts is huge," he said. "Once something gets into the water supply of the BBC, it's very hard to get it out."
Bu hikaye The Guardian dergisinin May 27, 2024 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Giriş Yap
Bu hikaye The Guardian dergisinin May 27, 2024 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Giriş Yap
Bold Bellingham rises to occasion to get England up and running
England are up and running Again.
Flags, booze and booing: fans embrace chance to do what they love most
Supporters of both sides got stuck into the drinking before the Three Lions anthem rang out
Buttler savours relief of great escape as Super Eights beckon
Having seen his team live to fight another day, the England captainis ready for the challenge’ to come
Masterful Scheffler meets his match
Winner of five tournaments this year and world No 1 failed to break par in North Carolina leading to a rethink
Hospitality hit by end of Covid 'revenge spending'
The period of post-Covid \"revenge spending\" has ended, leaving businesses having to look at different ways to attract customers, the chief operating officer of Merlin Entertainments has said.
Macron's snap election could leave France in chaos - Sarkozy
Emmanuel Macron has been warned by a former French president that his decision to call snap elections could plunge France into chaos, as his party languishes third in opinion polls, far behind the far-right National Rally.
Daily 'pause' by IDF in southern Gaza to let in more aid deliveries
The Israeli army has said it will observe a limited daily \"tactical pause\" along one of the main roads in the Gaza Strip to allow delivery of increased quantities of humanitarian aid, as UN agencies have suspended deliveries from a US-built pier.
More than 80 countries sign Ukraine peace communique
Key regional powers including Brazil, India, South Africa and Saudi Arabia have failed to sign up to a joint communique issued at the end of a Ukraine peace conference in which more than 80 countries and international organisations endorsed its territorial integrity in the face of Russia's invasion.
Police officer who rammed cow removed from frontline duties
The officer filmed deliberately ramming a cow twice with his police car has been removed from frontline duties while an internal investigation is conducted.
Prada celebrates gen Z with show driven by youth spirit
They have been ridiculed as snowflakes and \"too woke\" by some, but Prada's co-creative designers think gen Z are a generation to be celebrated.
