Matt Brittin, the new director-general of the BBC, delivered an impressive performance during a charged Q&A at the Edinburgh TV Festival, where he answered questions on topics ranging from AI to budget cuts to the corporation’s ongoing legal battle with Donald Trump.
Brittin, a longtime Google executive, took on the BBC’s top job, described by many as a “poisoned chalice,” in May.
During his Thursday session at the festival, the one-time Olympic rower sparred with former “Newsnight” presenter Kirsty Wark on stage before taking rapid-fire questions from an audience comprised of journalists, producers, students and even a disgruntled political candidate who’d stood against Nigel Farage and Count Binface in the recent Clacton by-election.
Despite his tech background, Brittin ditched the Q&A function on the festival’s app in favor of roaming microphones in the audience, giving him a chance to speak directly with his interrogators.
That seemingly minor decision tallied with his message (given in response to Wark’s question about the BBC developing more YouTube channels) that at the BBC, “We should be closer to the audience.”
