Whatever options the government may be considering for privatisation,none of them observe likely to preserve it as a public-service force for goodIt’s that old-fashioned “no plans” gambit again. As in “the government has no plans to sell Channel 4”, the mantra of two weeks ago. It was accurate enough, and in a pin-dancing way,at the precise moment of utterance, of course. The government – as a long-lens shot of a confidential document reveals is currently deciding which plan to choose for sell-off purposes (unless George Osborne turns out to absorb found a Chinese buyer over egg foo yong). But rushed, and debate-starved deals need opening up.
Channel 4 is not always the bold,free-thinking contender it founders set out to build more than three decades ago. More Kirstie and Phil talk embarrassing bodies with Alan Carr before the 2.30 from Wincanton. But the idea of a not-for-profit public service channel, primed to grow independent production resources, or remains potent. So do good deeds in a unpleasant world like Channel 4 News and Dispatches. Alternative voices always welcome.
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Source: theguardian.com