Football league show complaints.

[countryman]

I thought I would share a reply from the BBC after I complained about how they do not give enough time to any team who are not West Ham or Southampton.
Here it is:

I understand you feel the programme concentrates too much on Southampton and West Ham and other teams don't get enough coverage.

‘The Football League Show’ only has one match that is covered by multiple cameras a week.

The choice of which match to cover using multiple cameras is usually made a week before the programme for contractual and safety reasons. The rest of the games on ‘The Football League Show’ are covered by one camera.

We tend to give the most coverage to matches that are covered by multiple cameras, simple because the single camera coverage isn’t suitable for longer highlights due to the fact that we cannot vary angles or cut away to a different part of the action.

We usually lead the programme with the multi-camera match. However, we have in the past led with a single-camera match based on the merits of the match itself.

I realise you feel strongly about this, and to that end I’d like to assure you that I’ve registered your complaint on our audience log. This is a report of audience feedback that’s compiled daily and made available to staff across the BBC, including members of the BBC Executive Board, ‘The Football League Show’ team, channel controllers and other senior managers.

The audience logs are seen as important documents that can help shape decisions about future programming and content.

Thank you once again for taking the time to contact us regarding this matter.

Kind Regards

Paul Graham

BBC Complaints



Is it me or is that a piss poor excuse?

 

[Westdene Seagull]

But it doesn't answer your complaint surely ? So OK, the highlighted match is the one with multiple cameras - the question still stands why they don't send those multiple cameras to a greater variety of matches !

 

[Nathan]

In other words, they can't afford more camaras so have to go with the 'bigger' teams as they feel they will attract the bigger audience. Much like ITV do with the FA Cup matches they show. Things will change next year, ...we will be the final game on MOTD every week.

 

[KJP]

I hate it when their featured match is the same game sky have shown live

 

[Mr Everyone]

Think this is the Beeb's final year in the contract it has with the Football League. Seem to remember the highlights package for FL games, has not been taken up by the BBC for next season. So, cameras or multiple cameras, will we be able to watch the FL highlights without having Sky?

 

[Goldstone Rapper]

Is it me or is that a piss poor excuse?

No, it's a measured, polite response that gets what your perspective is and makes an effort to explain some of the budgetary considerations they have to make.

 

[seagullondon]

Think this is the Beeb's final year in the contract it has with the Football League. Seem to remember the highlights package for FL games, has not been taken up by the BBC for next season. So, cameras or multiple cameras, will we be able to watch the FL highlights without having Sky?

We will be on match of the day next year

 

[seagullsovergrimsby]

Its all about maintaining viewer ratings , the BBC would end up being lambasted by the highly vocal sports hating viewers as the FLS budget could be spent on Celebrity Come Dancing if they didn't feature the top couple of teams in the Championship week in , week out.

 

[countryman]

But it doesn't answer your complaint surely ? So OK, the highlighted match is the one with multiple cameras - the question still stands why they don't send those multiple cameras to a greater variety of matches !

I have written to them again asking why they can't send multiple cameras to a different game each week.

 

[Tooting Gull]

Think the coverage is pretty good, myself. It's the pundits that are the problem on that show.

Not sure you picked a very good weekend for this complaint. Leaders Saints get well turned over by play-off chasing Blackpool, Reading beat West Ham in clear game of the day. Brighton apart, they're the two games I was most interested in for the Football League.

 

[Falkor]

Better hope we don't go up then ya be moaning like mad at motd. Isn't the football league show being scrapped

 

[Horton's halftime iceberg]

Surely the multiple cameras may be more to do with the facilities at certain grounds to accommodate them i.e Saints, Hammers but if that is the case we have a new shiny stadium that must be state of the art. I am amazed we have not had a live BBC game this season and I do not believe we are getting one.

 

[Yoda]

I thought we always had muliple camera's at our home games, they might not be the BBC's, but the highlights we show on the big screens are always from about 2/3 different angles.

 

[pasty]

We will be on match of the day next year

Will Lawro have to FINALLY admit he once played for us?

 

[luge]

Surely the multiple cameras may be more to do with the facilities at certain grounds to accommodate them i.e Saints, Hammers but if that is the case we have a new shiny stadium that must be state of the art. I am amazed we have not had a live BBC game this season and I do not believe we are getting one.

Hello, I'll come out of the woodwork and add my BBC Sports producer hat on. Just as a start - I don't work on the FLS, it's all produced by an Independent production company - but can give an insight into how games are covered... I'm also not senior enough to chose where games are covered, before anyone asks!

The FLS suffers from what MOTD did about 10 years ago - namely there's very few full outside broadcast matches that can be mounted every weekend. In the FLS case, it's one.

Spllitting the cameras up to other matches isn't viable for a multitude of reasons - the main one being is that the chosen match each weekend is broadcast worldwide - live. So they expect, and pay for, the full OB treatment. But also because the BBC doesn't actually own those cameras, we hire in an outside broadcast company to do the match.

Why only one, will be to do with the amount of money it costs to put on an OB - they are very, very expensive things!!

In terms of bias - that's one that constantly gets chucked at us, as will it ITV and SKY. Everyone wants their piece of the pie, and you can't satisfy everyone. Generally what programme editors tend to go with are stories - so what's likely to provide the biggest story/best game. In the instance of last saturday, i think objectively and putting aside whatever club you support, on paper the best game would have been West Ham V Reading.

However a few weeks ago Albion v Pompey was the OB of choice. It's always a tricky one to chose, however.

The guy from compliance was right, it's ridiuclously difficult to cut around single camera coverage - so extending that isn't really an option.

In terms of an albion game being covered at the AMEX - we were hoping to do the first match against Doncaster... but for a multitude of reasons, including not being able to move kick off time, meant that it didn't happen. We did, however, broadcast football focus from the ground that day.

As for the rest of the season - it's up to the prog editors, and generally they've all been local derbies, or top of the table clashes. I think there's one more to chose, which is the final game of the season, which will more than likely be decided with a week to go.

Finally, yes I am an Albion fan!

 

[The tall one]

I think they take the coverage from Sky.

 

[beorhthelm]

But it doesn't answer your complaint surely ? So OK, the highlighted match is the one with multiple cameras - the question still stands why they don't send those multiple cameras to a greater variety of matches !

indeed, it just dodges the question. its not even that valid, as imo the problem with the highlights is those not "featured" get just the goals shown. A single camera can shirley be good enough capture 2-5 minutes of action, including a few corners, near misses, fouls etc that tell the story of a game? I'm sure they used to manage this in years gone by. the punditry wastes time too, I'd rather see the silky runs of some winger at Forest against Leicster than hear the pundit say how they think Forests is doing well with their new winger.

 

[Westdene Seagull]

Hello, I'll come out of the woodwork and add my BBC Sports producer hat on. Just as a start - I don't work on the FLS, it's all produced by an Independent production company - but can give an insight into how games are covered... I'm also not senior enough to chose where games are covered, before anyone asks!

The FLS suffers from what MOTD did about 10 years ago - namely there's very few full outside broadcast matches that can be mounted every weekend. In the FLS case, it's one.

Spllitting the cameras up to other matches isn't viable for a multitude of reasons - the main one being is that the chosen match each weekend is broadcast worldwide - live. So they expect, and pay for, the full OB treatment. But also because the BBC doesn't actually own those cameras, we hire in an outside broadcast company to do the match.

Why only one, will be to do with the amount of money it costs to put on an OB - they are very, very expensive things!!

In terms of bias - that's one that constantly gets chucked at us, as will it ITV and SKY. Everyone wants their piece of the pie, and you can't satisfy everyone. Generally what programme editors tend to go with are stories - so what's likely to provide the biggest story/best game. In the instance of last saturday, i think objectively and putting aside whatever club you support, on paper the best game would have been West Ham V Reading.

However a few weeks ago Albion v Pompey was the OB of choice. It's always a tricky one to chose, however.

The guy from compliance was right, it's ridiuclously difficult to cut around single camera coverage - so extending that isn't really an option.

In terms of an albion game being covered at the AMEX - we were hoping to do the first match against Doncaster... but for a multitude of reasons, including not being able to move kick off time, meant that it didn't happen. We did, however, broadcast football focus from the ground that day.

As for the rest of the season - it's up to the prog editors, and generally they've all been local derbies, or top of the table clashes. I think there's one more to chose, which is the final game of the season, which will more than likely be decided with a week to go.

Finally, yes I am an Albion fan!

Well bugger me with a fork !!!! A coherent, intelligent, informatative and sensible answer all in a single post on NSC. I never thought I'd see the day

 

[Storer 68]

I have written to them again asking why they can't send multiple cameras to a different game each week.

All the cameras they do own are allocated to the Olympics or agreed events months in advance..

I sit in front of the TV gantry at the AMEX and there are ususally 2 cameras there - one is for Sky and the other BBC

 

[Goldstone Rapper]

Will Lawro have to FINALLY admit he once played for us?

Finally?

Mark Lawrenson admitting to playing for Brighton, in the 1980s:
"I loved Brighton as soon as I saw the place, bright, bustling and cosmopolitan, and the football club was on a high. They had just been promoted to the second division and everything was looking good... I defy anyone not to like living in Brighton. I could see myself staying there permanently long after my football career was over, that's how much I liked the place"
(The Autobiography)

Mark Lawrenson, admitting to playing for Brighton, in the 1990s:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KxHR7VQFppA

Mark Lawrenson admitting to playing for Brighton, in the 2000s:
"Brighton was just so great. I'm sure everyone you've spoken to who went there has said the same thing. In terms of fun and everything it was just the best, apart from big Al occasionally going mental at us after games. It was a great time to be there with a great set of players and fantastic supporters."
(A Few Good Men, by Spencer Vignes)

Mark Lawrenson admitting to playing for Brighton, in the 2010s:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rmLnTj_701I