BBC exceeds creative diversity engagement target as original content spend exceeds $2 billion

The BBC has invested £128.5 million ($165.7 million) in the television and radio content in the first two years of its commitment to creative diversity, one year before the goal. In doing so, it surpassed the original £112 million commitment to diversity and inclusion on screen and on air.

The pledge, which was made in 2020 – £100m for TV and 12 million for radio - in the wake of the Black Lives Matter movement, was met with skepticism from some UK industry leaders last year who called it 'smoke and mirrors'.

This sentiment appears to have been refuted with the BBC saying it has "broadcast a huge range of television programs throughout the year that authentically reflect our audience, nurturing diverse voices and working with diverse cast and crew," citing "My Name Is Leon," "Avoidance," "Ranger Hamza's Eco Quest," " Una Marson: Caribbean Voices", "Le Mariage" and "Women's Euros" as examples.

In the second year of the engagement, the BBC invested £61 million to support a total of 118 TV channels programs. This follows an investment of £59m in the first year across 92 programmes. In addition, £8.5 million has been invested in supporting 290 diverse radio commissions over the past two years.

In 2023/24, programs will be eligible for financial investment if they complete at least two following criteria three criteria: diverse stories and representations; diversified production management; and diverse business leadership. The criteria are discussed at the time of the program commission, then measured at transmission.

Chinny Okolidoh, Director of Diversity and Inclusion at the BBC, said: "There There's still a lot to be done across the whole industry and we're working with other broadcasters and streamers to make a positive difference. We've always said the £112m investment is a starting point. Diversity and inclusion are a top priority for the BBC and we are fully committed to reflecting our audience and to further improving the representation, inclusion and accessibility of our content."

In its go-live procurement report, the BBC also revealed that its spending on content original television had increased to £1.6 billion ($2.06 billion), which created 28,000 hours of programming. The company engaged 351 independent television production companies and 166 radio production companies and 58% of the network's television spend was outside of London. Over 40 talent programs were launched, 65 new TV producers were commissioned, and 258 TV companies were developing funded ideas.