{"id":18982,"date":"2022-10-18T11:25:13","date_gmt":"2022-10-18T09:25:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.historyextra.com\/?p=217753"},"modified":"2022-10-18T11:41:11","modified_gmt":"2022-10-18T09:41:11","slug":"politics-and-public-broadcasting-1950s-friction-between-government-and-the-bbc","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbchistory\/rss_feed\/politics-and-public-broadcasting-1950s-friction-between-government-and-the-bbc\/","title":{"rendered":"Politics and public broadcasting: 1950s friction between government and the BBC"},"content":{"rendered":"

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By Elinor Evans\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Tuesday, 18 October 2022 at 12:00 am<\/p>

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In November 1956, a 14-minute televised address to the nation by the British prime minister Anthony Eden triggered possibly the single biggest Cold War-era<\/a> clash between government and the BBC. It stripped bare the intimate, if awkward, relationship between professional broadcasters and the worlds of Westminster and Whitehall. But behind the row lurked another battle between sharply different views on the proper role of television in reporting politics.<\/p>\n

The broadcast, on the evening of Saturday 3 November, represented Eden\u2019s hurried attempt to justify a botched and ill-judged military adventure of his own making. In the wake of Egypt\u2019s recent nationalisation of the Suez Canal, Israeli forces had invaded the Sinai Peninsula at the end of October. Israel\u2019s action had been secretly planned in collaboration with Britain and France, in order to justify a subsequent occupation of the Canal Zone by British and French paratroopers.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Read more about\u00a0the Suez Crisis<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>
Eden\u2019s collusion had initially been a secret known only to a handful of close ministers and advisors. Yet there was disquiet about Britain\u2019s whole response to Egypt\u2019s nationalisation. Even before the first British paratroopers had landed, Eden felt compelled to go before the BBC\u2019s cameras to explain what was happening. In his broadcast, he spoke of Britain\u2019s military intervention as a form of \u201cpolice action\u201d and claimed that he had acted \u201crightly and wisely\u201d. His words weren\u2019t enough to assuage the UN, which condemned the use of force, nor the US, which pressed for an almost immediate ceasefire. Before long, British and French troops had been forced into a humiliating withdrawal.<\/p>\n
The problem for the BBC was that the crisis had already divided public and political opinion. The Labour party, in particular, was vehemently opposed to Eden\u2019s policy. Oliver Whitley, the assistant controller of\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>the BBC\u2019s Overseas Services, later explained the dilemma facing senior staff at the time.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Explore the history of the BBC<\/h4>\n
This is part nine in a 13-part series by David Hendy that charts how the BBC shaped the nation. Read more about the history of the BBC<\/a>:<\/p>\n
Part 1 | The BBC begins: how a group of radio pioneers launched one of Britain\u2019s most famous institutions<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n
Part 2 | Broadcasting House: a new home for the BBC<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n
Part 3 | Andy Pandy to Blue Peter: how the BBC captivated little citizens<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n
Part 4 | From \u201cexotic\u201d attractions to changing racial attitudes: the BBC\u2019s slow progress to mirror multicultural Britain<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n
Part 5 |<\/strong>\u00a0The BBC changes its tune to play the sounds of the sixties<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n
Part 6 |<\/strong>\u00a0The BBC\u2019s Third Programme troubled championing of \u201chigh culture\u201d<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n
Part 7 | The BBC goes into the wild: the rise of natural history television and David Attenborough<\/a><\/b><\/p>\n
Part 8 |\u00a0The battle for ratings: how EastEnders saved the BBC<\/a><\/b><\/p>\n
<\/p><\/div> <\/section>
\u201cWe had all got used to the fact that there wasn\u2019t a great deal of difference in foreign policy between the two main political parties,\u201d he said, \u201cand here suddenly the nation was split right down the middle,\u00a0<\/span>pro and against Suez, and the BBC felt it its duty to reflect accurately, as accurately as it could, the situation.\u201d It meant news coverage both at home and abroad had to feature at least some commentary opposed to Eden. It also meant that, with Eden having defended himself on primetime TV, the Labour leader Hugh Gaitskell demanded \u2013 and expected \u2013 the same treatment. The BBC thought this reasonable; the government did not.<\/p>\n
Throughout this unfolding drama, the director general, Ian Jacob, had been in Australia. In his absence, Norman Bottomley, the BBC\u2019s director of administration, and Harman Grisewood, the director general\u2019s chief assistant, were the two senior corporation officials summoned to Whitehall for a dressing down. Grisewood recalled \u201ca lot of soldiers and some Air Force people\u201d telling them that full wartime conditions applied \u2013 conditions that obliged the BBC to support the government of the day just as it had done during the Second World War.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n
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