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The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is, as far as I know, a fully government-subsidized British TV channel. Does that not make it an arm of the British government? While some may point to its independence, the same is claimed for the US judiciary system. Yet no one claims that its independence makes the US judiciary something other than a branch of the government. The BBC is an entity which was founded by the British government, which is funded by the British government, and which at times (most notably during WWII) was a propaganda arm of the government.

Since the Russian channel RT (formerly "Russia Today") was recently asked to register as a foreign agent, because it is owned by the Russian government, shouldn't the same be requested of the BBC? Is there any distinction?

While it may be tempting to point to the fact that Russia is at odds (to put it mildly) with the US and GB is an ally, I don't think that British agents (of other branches of the GB government) are excused from registering as foreign agents. So what's different about BBC?

grovkin
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    The judiciary is independent of the other two parts, but it is still explicitly part of the USA government. "Independent" in the British (and Commonwealth) political sense means largely or entirely independent of any government involvement. – Nij Jan 05 '18 at 08:06
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    It receives money from the government, that's not the same thing as government involvement. – Nij Jan 05 '18 at 08:35
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    Wouldn't France 24 be a better analogy to Russia Today, than the BBC is? – gerrit Jan 05 '18 at 09:57
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    Getting funding from <> being explicitly controlled by. Comparing BBC to RT is an oversimplification, to say the least. – PoloHoleSet Jan 05 '18 at 16:22
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    For what it's worth, the same could also be argued for Al Jazeera with regard to Qatar. – reirab Jan 06 '18 at 00:36
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    This just reminds me of how the Federal Reserve Banks are somehow "privately owned" even though the leaders of the Fed are selected by the President of the United States and confirmed by the Senate (not elected by a shareholder vote from all the commercial banks which supposedly "co-own" Federal Reserve Banks). One Congressman used to argue that the Federal Reserve Headquarters ought to pay property taxes just like any other privately owned corporate entity. – Lorendiac Jan 06 '18 at 03:56
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    Anybody have proof that RT is controlled in any way by the Russian government? Or are you just talking out of your ass? – dan-klasson Jan 06 '18 at 10:14
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    @dan-klasson See here. Also, please remember to Be Nice. – reirab Jan 06 '18 at 14:09
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    @reirab: Where exactly in that Wikipedia is proof that RT is controlled by the Russian government? People are so used to being spoonfed with American propaganda so when they are presented with an alternative viewpoint they feel they need to label that as something evil. – dan-klasson Jan 06 '18 at 14:53
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    @dan-klasson: It looks like you have sufficient ground for asking a new question on Politics.SE or Skeptics.SE : "To what extend is RT controlled by the Russian government?". That will be a much better place to discuss the matter than the comments here. – Evargalo Jan 08 '18 at 08:31
  • Google should also put a warning below BBC videos on YouTube warning that they are funded in part by the British government. – Chloe May 28 '18 at 19:28
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    @dan-klasson I agree, it only said "critics accused". I couldn't find any proof. I'm sure Putin just assassinates any journalists he doesn't like, but I couldn't find any proof. In fact, from one of the sources, "'Fox …you hate Americans. Glenn Beck, you hate Americans.' ... Forget the Obama administration, since when does Russia Today defend the policies of any American president?" Perhaps RT is controlled by the American government, according to these commenter's logic. – Chloe May 28 '18 at 19:40
  • If you are of the view that the BBC is owned (it isn't) and managed (it isn't) by the British government you should be aware that almost every UK government in the last fifty years has fought a war against the BBC. It is probably the present government';s most influential critic. Indeed people who want to protect the BBC from being reduced in size and scope, usually do so on the basis that it would be allowing the government to remove a thorn in its side. The BBC was constituted by Act of Parliament, and is funded by a licence fee which is levied on TV and radio receivers. – WS2 Nov 23 '20 at 16:46
  • Indeed, being mostly free of commercial sponsors (inside the UK), the BBC is one of the few truly "independent" broadcasters in the western world. It takes a centre-left position on most issues and the present UK Prime Minister hates it. It has been noted that in Britain, unlike the United States, where traditional religion has been in decline for decades, that for most in Britain the two worshipped icons of religion are the BBC and the National Health Service. Americans might do well to take a closer look at both of them. – WS2 Nov 23 '20 at 16:56

5 Answers5

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The relevant US law is the Foreign Agents Registration Act, which covers agents who act "at the order, request, or under the direction or control" of a foreign power.

Therefore, institutional and editorial independence is the key.

If the UK Prime Minister tells (say) an employee of MI6 or the Foreign Office to do something, that person is required to either do it or resign.

This is not so for the BBC. Even during the Second World War, the BBC maintained its editorial independence; this was a deliberate policy, as it was believed the BBC would be more trusted if it was seen to be independent rather than a direct mouthpiece for government.

Instead of comparing the BBC to agencies under direct government control, a better analogy would be a university. British universities receive most of their funding from central government; but the Prime Minister is unable to sack university professors at will, and the mere fact of being a professor at (say) Oxford University does not make a person an agent of the British government in any meaningful sense.

Of course, both the BBC and Oxford University are part of the British establishment, and for cultural reasons will tend to reflect the establishment consensus; but that is a different matter from being agencies under the control of the government of the day.

Royal Canadian Bandit
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    @grovkin: Exactly the same would apply to a judge in the UK Supreme Court. It's highly doubtful that judges qualify as "foreign agents" within the meaning of the FARA. For example, a UK judge on sabbatical at a US university probably wouldn't have to register as a foreign agent. – Royal Canadian Bandit Jan 05 '18 at 09:52
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    @RoyalCanadianBandit hmm, that's actually kind of weird to think about. What actually counts as being part of the foreign power? Although the prime minister can't tell a UK judge what to do, surely the UK judge could "order or control" him or her self. – Christopher King Jan 05 '18 at 14:51
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    While they tend to reflect the establishment consensus , it's precisely the times when they chose not to reflect the consensus that it's critical they be allowed to do so. – corsiKa Jan 05 '18 at 16:30
  • While this answers the first part of the question, it does not answer why RT is required to register as a foreign agent, since everything concerning the BBC in this answer does apply to RT as well –  Jan 07 '18 at 21:14
  • @grovkin Having three seperate, independent branches of government (judicative, executive, legislative) is the foundation of any modern democratic government. That doesn't apply to government funding of certain entities, though. If getting subsidies is enough to be a foreign agent, then almost anything and anoyone would be a foreign agent (even your friendly neighbour cattle farmer). – Polygnome Jan 07 '18 at 22:07
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    @grovkin - "If the US President ... directs a member of the Supreme Court to rule in a certain way ...". If "directs" includes a case where a US President "asks" (or directs someone else to "ask") a member of the Supreme Court to rule in a certain way while making it clear that it is in the best interest (financial, safety, privacy, etc) of the Supreme Court member to rule that way, then I'm sure it has at various times already happened... just part of politics and human nature. Independent, officially yes. But that does not mean one cannot influence or even coerce the other. – Kevin Fegan Jan 08 '18 at 04:11
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    @KevinFegan that actually happens, via proxy, on a regular basis. Every time a federal attorney representing the U.S. Department of Justice is involved in a case being adjudicated by the U.S. Supreme Court, they are essentially directing the Court to rule a certain way on behalf of the Secretary of Justice and the President. Whether the Justices respect the attorney's request is another issue, and one that we (in the U.S.) eagerly anticipate whenever the Court releases their judgments and opinion documents each year. –  Jan 08 '18 at 17:11
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    I think substantiating the claim "BBC has editorial independence" by linking to documents from the BBC themselves is questionable. – DrCopyPaste Jan 09 '18 at 11:43
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    @DrCopyPaste: I very much doubt the BBC has posted incorrect information about its own governing structures. Informal channels of influence are very difficult to prove or disprove; but formally speaking, the BBC has editorial independence from the UK government. – Royal Canadian Bandit Jan 09 '18 at 17:45
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    @RoyalCanadianBandit I agree and am not in much doubt about that either, but I just find it a weak source. Granted, this is not skeptics.se but I just find the line of reasoning ... ("I am trustworthy." - "Why should I believe that?" - "Because I say so.")... weird. – DrCopyPaste Jan 10 '18 at 09:31
  • @grovkin - "the distinction between executive which "directs" a court to rule and which "asks" a court to rule (by arguing in front of the court) ..." I think you must have read the first part of my comment and missed the rest because your response misses my point. I'm not talking about a case in front of the court. I'm talking about a 1-on-1 private communication. If a President "Instructs" a Supreme Court Judge to vote a certain way, it is nothing more than "asking" as Judge can act on his own. But add "reward/coercion" to that and it is something else. Please re-read my previous comment. – Kevin Fegan Jan 21 '18 at 21:00
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    How is the editorial structure of RT different from that of the BBC? Because this answer does not discuss RT, it answer does not answer the question "what's different about BBC?" – phoog May 24 '18 at 21:35
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The BBC is a collection of entities, some of which are funded by the British government, some of which are not.

The BBC's news output which is available outside of the UK is run by BBC Global News, Ltd. This company is not funded in any way by the UK government or by the license fee that is paid by UK residents, but strictly by advertising and subscription revenues. It is because of this lack of funding from the UK government, as well as the editorial independence that you mentioned earlier, that means the BBC would not be covered under the Foreign Agents Registration Act.

As for the BBC's entertainment programming (such as what you'll find on BBC Americas), while much of the content is part-funded by the UK license fee (because we enjoy it in the UK as well), it's very difficult to argue that there is any political activity involved, so that would also not be covered under FARA.

JJJ
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Joe C
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  • Your second paragraph is not entirely accurate. Many people outside the UK can receive BBC 1, BBC 2, perhaps BBC 3 and 4. For example, those channels are typically part of cable packages in The Netherlands. Those channels are paid for by UK license fee payers yet available outside the UK. – gerrit Jan 05 '18 at 09:55
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    @gerrit 3 no longer exists, so it’s unlikely that is available. – Tim Jan 05 '18 at 11:11
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    +1 but I suggest you add to your answer the BBC World Service, which is in some ways an agency of, and funded by, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/bbc-world-service – Qsigma Jan 05 '18 at 14:58
  • This answer describes the BBC without discussing RT, so it does not answer the question "what's different about BBC?" – phoog May 24 '18 at 21:35
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Because FARA is a vague written law that can be used to target particular individuals/entities that the current US government does not like.

For example from Wikipedia, United States v. Franklin:

The 2005 case of United States v. Franklin, Rosen, and Weissman against United States Department of Defense employee Larry Franklin and American Israel Public Affairs Committee policy director Steven Rosen and AIPAC senior Iran analyst Keith Weissman[41][42] raised the possibility that AIPAC would come under greater scrutiny by the Department of Justice. While Franklin pleaded guilty to passing government secrets to Rosen and Weissman, as well as to an Israeli government official,[43][44] the cases against Rosen and Weissman were dismissed and no actions against AIPAC were instituted.[40]

So it is a matter of a poorly written law that makes "everybody" guilty but allows the government to pick when to enforce it.

Unfortunately this is considered "conspiracy" but it is true in multiple areas some of which are not related to Russia. For example recently there was a discussion if Jeff Sessions will start enforcing federal laws regarding Marijuana(Obama administration decided not to enforce a certain law and now Sessions plans to end that practice). In other words law did not change, but different administrations choose to ignore it or not ignore it.

Nemo
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NoSenseEtAl
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  • The government can always pick when to enforce a law. Since you mention marijuana, look for example at the racial disparity in marijuana prosecutions. – phoog May 24 '18 at 21:37
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    Indeed vagueness seems to permeate FARA according to https://www.justsecurity.org/53967/unintended-foreign-agents/ – the gods from engineering Aug 04 '18 at 15:10
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While the BBC might well be part of the British establishment, it does have independence from the government. We could argue all day about funding sources and whether the licence fee is a tax. From outside the UK the views it presents do appear to coincide with those of the government on many issues. In your comments you mention attitudes to former colonies. The mainstream view of Britain's colonial past is very rosy; even many figures on the left seem to regret the loss of the empire, a veiw that's almost universal on the right (including among the current government, whose representatives do get quite a lot of airtime). Similar arguments apply to Israel/Palestine, where other parts of the traditional British media are much more pro-Israel.

Within the UK the BBC is often perceived as left-wing by Tories and the right-wing press, especially so since the Brexit vote. As the Tories are in government that means a significant perception within the UK of anti-government bias. Conversely the left of the Labour party feel pretty hard-done-by and accuse the BBC of unfair treatment. They are required to tread a fine line and by drawing the ire of both sides must be getting it right much of the time.

Chris H
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    @grovkin yes, and to put it simply the government doesn't tell them what to say. In fact the charter and agreement with government tell them that they must be impartial. I think you'll have to read it. – Chris H Jan 05 '18 at 09:54
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    I am sure RT charter tells RT to say what Kremlin wants. /s – NoSenseEtAl Jan 06 '18 at 07:20
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    Strongly disagree about the general "rosy" view of Britain's colonial past. Although people may remark on the change in Britain's relative influence since the 19th century, almost everyone would acknowledge that many disservices were done to indigenous people in those times, and there is no appetite for a return to that era. – Baracus Jan 06 '18 at 20:15
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    @Baracus do you mean as presented by the BBC or as a mainstream view? When I emerge from the liberal bubble in which I spend most of my time, views like "but we gave them the railways/civil service/civilisation" are all too common. – Chris H Jan 06 '18 at 21:31
  • I have never observed a "view" on colony in the BBC's output. Although many people in the street may talk about how "we" gave "them" railways, I don't believe the British public then makes the leap to say that everything we did in that era was correct. It is in the UK's distant past now . – Baracus Jan 07 '18 at 11:45
  • @Baracus, let's just say that they don't feel much need to provide balance when Boris Johnson comes out with some of his more outspoken lines on the subject – Chris H Jan 07 '18 at 15:24
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The majority of the BBC is NOT government funded. It is important to make this distinction.

The bulk of the BBC's domestic programming is funded by the TV licence. This is not a tax, but it is an enforceable charge levied on households consuming broadcast TV.

The majority of the BBC's international programming is not funded by the licence fee, but is funded by commercial revenues (advertising etc.).

However, the BBC World Service IS directly funded by the Foreign Office (UK government department).

There are many controversies around the way the BBC is funded (is the license fee a "tax"/how can you "sell" programmes that are made with licence fee funding/where does the World Service draw the line between "international development" and "propaganda" etc etc), but it is fundamentally NOT an organ of the state.

"Auntie" has a unique relationship with the UK public. Politically, the left think it is too conservative and the right think it is too liberal. Since nobody is happy, BBC News (which is required to be impartial) must be getting the balance about right. Yet when there is an event of national importance - people will choose to watch the BBC's coverage of it.

P.S. Channel 4 IS government owned, but commercially funded.

Baracus
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    The first line of your original question was "The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is, as far as I know, a fully government-subsidized British TV channel." This was your premise for the question as to whether that it should be treated as a "foreign agent". The point I was making was that your premise is wrong - it is not government subsidised (with the exception of the BBC World Service). There are also other regulatory reasons why it does not reflect the views of the state. Its independence from government is far more than a perception. – Baracus Jan 07 '18 at 11:51
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    @Baracus Actually, the World Service hasn't been funded by the UK government since 2010. – David Richerby Jan 07 '18 at 22:23
  • What about RT's funding? The question is about the difference between RT and the BBC. – phoog May 24 '18 at 21:38
  • "enforceable charge levied on households consuming broadcast TV". Seems to be a flawed justification that flat rate government fees are fundamentally different from percentage-based taxes. A vehicle registration fee is a flat-rate fee used to pay for roads, and an fuel excise tax is variable. Both are government charges on public road users. I see no difference. – user71659 Apr 27 '19 at 20:31