Conservative politicians have long suspected the BBC of closet liberal leanings.Boris Johnson’s government uses the “Brexit-Bashing Corporation” as a punchbag, as part of a strategy of drawing cultural dividing lines rather than economic ones.But the real danger posed by political skirmishes such as that over Mr Bashir is one of distraction.The more the BBC focuses on government assaults, the less it is able to cope with bigger threats emanating mostly from America.More than six out of ten British homes now subscribe to an American videostreaming service.The result is more competition for eyeballs.In the past decade Britons have gone from watching four hours a day of broadcast television to just under three.Among under-35s, broadcast TV accounts for less than a third of video viewing.The BBC is good at new media.Its website is Britain’s fourth-most visited after Google, YouTube and Facebook.The iPlayer streaming service, which the BBC launched in 2007 (the same year Netflix began streaming) is used by more people in Britain than any subscription platform.It is not enough.In 2019 under-35s spent less than an hour a day consuming BBC output, across television, radio and the internet, down by 17 minutes in just two years.The compulsory licence fee through which it is funded is not cheap: at 159 pounds ($225) a year,
