British TV turns off YouTube generation, says Ofcom
CHILDREN are turning to ‘ unregulated’ video streaming sites because British broadcasters don’t make enough shows for them, Ofcom has found.
The regulator warned the BBC, ITV and Channel 4 that they must produce more UK content that appeals to the young.
Online platforms, such as YouTube and Netflix, meanwhile, are reaping the benefits with the sites becoming ‘the destination of choice’ for many older children.
Figures laid bare in Ofcom’s Children’s Content Review revealed that 71 per cent of five to seven-year- olds use YouTube. This soars to 90 per cent among those aged 12 to 15. It comes as public service broadcasters are spending less on children’s programming. Between 2006 and 2017, the collective annual spend fell from £144million to £81million in real terms.
Responding to the call for evidence, the Girl Guide movement said that young girls
‘Pose greater risks to children’
and women did not feel adequately represented on screen. ‘There is a limited range of children’s programmes that help children to understand the world around them,’ the review said. UK children also find it hard to find programmes which reflect ‘their lives, in all its diversity’ ‘reflected on screen’.
Ofcom warned: ‘While online platforms, such as video sharing sites and social media, offer flexibility and access to a wide range of content, they also pose greater risks to children.
‘This is because these broadcasters operate under a much lower level of regulation in the UK than broadcasters.’
A spokesman for lobbying group, the Voice of the Listener and Viewer, said: ‘Parents are clearly disappointed by the reduction in choice of TV programmes on free channels for their children and worried by the lack of protection for children against harmful content online.’
A BBC spokesman said: ‘We welcome today’s review by Ofcom.
‘We have recently announced the biggest investment in children’s services in a generation – including an extra £34million for children’s content.’
A spokesman for ITV declined to comment.