The Late Late Show comedian has got something serious to discuss. James Cordon who rose to fame through BBC sitcom Gavin and Stacey, gave a passionate speech defending BBC after the news surfaced that the British government is preparing to ‘announce the White Paper on BBC’s future’.
The BBC is a public service broadcaster, meaning that it operates in service of the UK public who pay a tax-like license fee, which is the core of the BBCs funding, and is not an institution that aims to make a profit, with all money made being poured back into the BBC.
It’s a long-awaited step by the authorities. According to the reports by DigitalSpy, not only is government planning to unveil the workings of the channel, it’s also trying to abolish the BBC Trust. And James Cordon ain’t having any of this. While talking to Press Association, he said that the corporation is “part of the foundation of all that is good in Britain”.
He continued, “How can you not be concerned about it? The BBC is so much bigger and greater than me standing here saying something as irrelevant as “I wouldn’t have a career without it”. It is a fundamental cornerstone of everything Britain stands for. It is freedom of speech at its greatest.”
BBC is the lifeline of people who live in war-ridden regions and are cut out from the world. Its popularity is evident from the fact that people might not know about Facebook or Twitter but they would still be knowing about BBC, specifically BBC news channel and BBC radio as they serve as the information portals in such regions. The corporation has been serving people with news and entertainment for many decades and has become a main source of information. Emphasizing this fact, Corden said,
“When you look at the output… for how many pence a day is it? It’s something crazy, right? You’ve got radio and the iPlayer and these incredible channels and BBC News, which is a news service bound by nothing, only actually telling you what’s happening in the world.”
Apprehensive about its future, Corden voiced out his concerns:
“If it goes, if we lose it, I swear to God, we’re going to wake up one day and go, ‘Oh, we didn’t realize. It is a brilliant and wonderful service that we should have nothing but pride in. I don’t understand anyone that doesn’t agree with that.”
In short, James Corden stance is pretty clear. He won’t stand with government’s decision to control BBC Trust and its workings.
What do you think about Corden’s speech? We would like to know your opinions on the government’s move. Tell us in the comments or tweet @CelebMix .