Humanists rejoice! BBC will consult them on religion

[MedGen]

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/media ... 71065.html

Humanists rejoice! BBC will consult them on religion

For the first time, the broadcaster will take advice on programmes like 'Thought for the Day' from a secularist

By Emily Dugan

Sunday, 19 April 2009

Religious broadcasting has taken an unexpected turn at the BBC, leaving secularists last night claiming a breakthrough. An important new committee that the corporation will consult on religious broadcasting is to include a humanist.

The move, which some see as a potential threat to the future of slots such as Thought for the Day, will see groups representing secular beliefs offering advice and suggestions to the broadcaster. The move is a significant shift for the corporation, and follows a series of recent victories for secularists in public life, including a legal ruling in favour of the so-called atheist bus, the addition of humanism to a GCSE religious studies syllabus, and the launch of the first major national student secular society.

Andrew Copson, director of education and public affairs for the British Humanist Association, has been appointed to the BBC's Standing Conference on Religion and Belief, a new body which replaces the Central Religious Advisory Committee (Crac), which advised on "religion-related policy and coverage".

Mr Copson suggested his appointment may give him the chance to challenge the long fought over Radio 4 religious slot, Thought for the Day. "We need to see an increased contribution from humanists in slots run by the religion and ethics department that are presently confined only to religions," he said.

The new body, which will meet with senior BBC officials several times a year, gathers for the first time on Wednesday. Unlike Crac, which was closed by the BBC Trust at the end of 2007, the Standing Conference on Religion and Belief will be independent from the broadcaster, but it will continue to have the same chairman, Bishop Graham James, at its head.

The BBC played down the significance of the inclusion, concerned that it would alarm religious groups. Despite this, the chief executive of the British Humanist Association, Hanne Stinson, heralded Mr Copson's appointment as a "great step". "Until now humanists have been excluded from any consultative or advisory role in relation to the BBC on a level with religious groups and representatives," Ms Stinson said. "In an open society, those of religious and non-religious beliefs should have a fair input on matters that concern them and the inclusion of humanist representation is a great step towards this."

The philosopher A C Grayling said the news was "incredible", and signified the culmination of a series of successes for secularists. "I would say in recent months we've seen a real change. There have been cracks in the ice over the last few years, but bits of Antarctica are finally floating free now. When you think of the great institution of the BBC finally conceding that a whole viewpoint needs to be heard, that's pretty incredible.

"At long last, here is one token of acceptance that the traditional way of thinking about matters of the spirit and matters of the mind needs to be rethought."

According to Ofcom, the broadcasting regulator, 6 per cent of viewers watch religious programmes on the main TV channels – the lowest proportion of any programme genre. A recent poll found that more than a third of Britons did not feel they belonged to a religion at all.

Good to see that the Beeb is finally taking notice of the world around them, and making an attempt to be as representative as possible. Still along way to go obviously, but its a promising start.

[klr]

[Chinaski]

Yay!

[Hermit]

Yessssssssssss!

[Animavore]

Meh.

[CJ]

Result!!!

[Animavore]

This annoys me.
By having atheists on a programme dedicated to religion you're only making atheism seem like a religion too.
Why do some atheists feel the need to muscle in on all things religious like those assholes putting atheist signs beside nativity scenes?
It's dumb.

[CJ]

This annoys me.
By having atheists on a programme dedicated to religion you're only making atheism seem like a religion too.
Why do some atheists feel the need to muscle in on all things religious like those assholes putting atheist signs beside nativity scenes?
It's dumb.

It bloody well isn't dumb at all. This is about rolling back the privileged position religion has held in society for far too long. 'Thought for the Day' is about an ethical or moral ideal that people might consider a good thing to do. Belief in God does not give one a morally or ethically privileged position they have bullied their way into that position over the centuries and it's about time they got shown in no uncertainty that do not have a monopoly on leading moral and ethical thought. Fuck 'um they can fight on an even playing field for the first time in history in see how they like it!

[charlou]

Consultation is a start ...

[AshtonBlack]

It's a step forward.

[Chinaski]

I wonder... If we, rationalia, as a group, were asked to decide on political or social issues, such as taxes, funding, abortion, international relations, prisons, etc... Would we all give the same answers? The political compass compatibility makes me think yes, but surely, there must be some discrepancies somewhere.

[charlou]

I wonder... If we, rationalia, as a group, were asked to decide on political or social issues, such as taxes, funding, abortion, international relations, prisons, etc... Would we all give the same answers? The political compass compatibility makes me think yes, but surely, there must be some discrepancies somewhere.

It would be interesting to find out ... I thought we might start a few more threads based on the statements in that questionaire to discuss them, as I did with the statement about culture and civilisation etc ... Your topic suggestions would interest me, too.

I like chatting with you people about our views ... we seem to manage at minimum a relatively good level of respect toward each other, and we can articulate our ideas really well while being reasonably fair in considering new or differing opinions.

[AshtonBlack]

I wonder... If we, rationalia, as a group, were asked to decide on political or social issues, such as taxes, funding, abortion, international relations, prisons, etc... Would we all give the same answers? The political compass compatibility makes me think yes, but surely, there must be some discrepancies somewhere.

It would be interesting to find out ... I thought we might start a few more threads based on the statements in that questionaire to discuss them, as I did with the statement about culture and civilisation etc ... Your topic suggestions would interest me, too.

I like chatting with you people about our views ... we seem to manage at minimum a relatively good level of respect toward each other, and we can articulate our ideas really well while being reasonably fair in considering new or differing opinions.

Talk, good

[Pappa]

Cooltastic.

[Xamonas Chegwé]

I must admit to a little bit of but I suppose it is progress.