MUMBAI: People in the UK are more concerned with the portrayal of age on TV than on other platforms. Age is considered much less of an issue on radio, as participants could not readily tell the age of contributors and would choose a radio station that reflects their needs and interests.

Younger people are most concerned with how they are portrayed on TV, and many feel they are portrayed negatively. This view was also shared by some older people.

The Creative Diversity Network (CDN) has published the findings of its research in portrayal of age in the media, ?Serving All Ages?. The research was commissioned by the BBC as current chair of the CDN.

The CDN is a partnership of media companies made up of ITV, Channel 4, Sky, S4/C, Pact, MTV, Media Trust, Turner and Bafta, which exists to improve diversity across the industry.

The key findings are:

- Older people are less concerned with portrayal on TV, but some expressed a feeling of invisibility. This was particularly the case for middle aged and older women and more so in some genres (news and factual) than others

- Audiences wanted television in particular to reflect reality and wanted to avoid stereotyping and see a focus on accurate portrayal of all ages

- Industry experts focused on the need to find imaginative and creative ways to challenge existing stereotypes without being formulaic and stressed the importance of tracking and reviewing progress

BBC DG and CDN chair Mark Thompson said, ?There are lessons here for the BBC and the rest of Britain?s broadcasters. It is young people who are most concerned with the way they are portrayed and we need to look at this. But we should also note the concern, expressed by older people generally, about the need for greater visibility for older women. While of course there are many older women presenters and actors across our airwaves, this is something that needs to be addressed.?

MUMBAI: BBC director general Mark Thompson will step down from his post and leave the organisation either later this year after the Olympic Games or in 2013.

BBC Trust chairman Lord Patten had said earlier that the organisation had already employed headhunters Egon Zehnder to search for a successor to Thompson.

Reports state that there are three internal possibilities for the job. They are BBC COO Caroline Thomson, BBC News head Helen Boaden and BBC Vision head George Entwistle.

MUMBAI: US broadcaster Fox has announced that its music-based reality show The X Factor‘s Steve Jones will co-host ‘Countdown To The Emmys‘, the official live pre-show of the 63rd Primetime Emmy Awards, airing on 18 September.

Jones joins previously announced co-hosts Nancy O‘Dell, Mark Thompson and Amanda Byram.

 
The live one-hour special will capture the arrivals of Primetime Emmy(R) nominees, presenters and special guests. O‘Dell, Thompson, Jones and Byram will set the stage for the night‘s festivities as they interview the stars on the red carpet and get the inside scoop on the fashion, the nerves and the excitement.

Hosted by Jane Lynch and executive-produced by Mark Burnett, the Emmys will celebrate the year‘s best television programming.