BBC World News

The channel originally started as BBC World Service Television and was a commercial operation. The British government refused to fund to the new television service using grant-in-aid. (BBC World Service radio was funded by a grant-in-aid from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office until 2014.) The channel started broadcasting on 11 March 1991, after two weeks of real-time pilots, initially as a half-hour bulletin once a day at 19:00 GMT.

On Thursday, 26 January 1995 at 19:00 GMT, BBC World Service Television was split into two services:

• BBC World started broadcasting on Monday, 16 January 1995 at 19:00 GMT and became a 24-hour English free-to-air international news channel.
• BBC Prime started broadcasting on Monday, 30 January 1995 at 19:00 GMT and became the BBC's light entertainment channel, later renamed BBC Entertainment.

BBC World's on-air design was changed significantly on 3 April 2000, bringing it closer to the look of its sister channel in the UK which was then known as BBC News 24, the on-air look of which had been redesigned in 1999.[5] The look of both channels was made up of red and cream and designed by Lambie-Nairn, with music based on a style described as 'drums and beeps' composed by David Lowe, a departure from the general orchestral nature of music used by other news programmes.

On 8 December 2003 a second makeover, using the same 'drums and beeps' style music but new graphics took place, although on a much smaller scale to that of 2000. The music was changed slightly while the main colour scheme became black and red, with studios using frosted glass and white and red colours. Later in 2004, the channel's slogan became Putting News First, replacing Demand a Broader View.

The channel's present name "BBC World News" was introduced on 21 April 2008 as part of a £550,000 rebranding of the BBC's overall news output and visual identity. BBC World News later moved to the renovated studio vacated by BBC News 24 (now the BBC News Channel). New graphics were produced by the Lambie-Nairn design agency and music reworked by David Lowe.

Live news output originates from studios B and C in Broadcasting House with some recorded programming from Broadcasting House studio A and the BBC Millbank studio. The BBC World News newsroom is now part of the new consolidated BBC Newsroom in Broadcasting House along with BBC World Service and UK domestic news services.

Previously, the channel was broadcast in 4:3, with the news output fitted into a 14:9 frame for both digital and analogue broadcasting, resulting in black bands at the top and bottom of the screen. On 13 January 2009 at 09:57 GMT, BBC World News switched its broadcast to 16:9 format, initially in Europe on Astra 1L satellite,[7] and Eutelsat Hot Bird 6 satellite to other broadcast feeds in the Asian region from 20 January 2009. The channel ceased broadcasting on analogue satellite on 18 April 2006.[8]

Live news programmes:[25]

• BBC World News – International news.
• GMT – International news, including business and sport.
• Impact – Global news as it affects audiences in Asia.
• Global – International news and analysis.
• Outside Source – Discussion and analysis of news topics.
• Newsday – Live from Singapore and London, news and analysis from both an Asian and global perspective.
• BBC World News America – News from America and around the world, live from the BBC's Washington DC bureau.
• Focus on Africa – BBC World News' flagship African news programme, with news, business and sport from the continent.
• Beyond 100 Days – Katty Kay in Washington and Christian Fraser in London report on international news, with a focus on the UK, Europe and the US (previously branded as 100 Days and 100 Days +).
• World News Today – A daily news programme with in-depth analysis. Focus on the UK, Europe, Middle East and Africa. Presenters include Nancy Kacungira, Karin Giannone, Kasia Madera, Alpa Patel and Philippa Thomas
• The Briefing – Sally Bundock with news, business, and sports from BBC News.[26]

Live business and sport programmes:

• Worklife – Broadcast live from London.
• World Business Report – Business news analysis.
• Asia Business Report – Business and market news in Asia, live from Singapore.
• Sport Today – International sports news and results.

Pre-recorded programmes:

• Africa Business Report – Weekly African business news programme.
• Click – Technology programme aimed at non-technical audiences.
• Dateline London – Foreign correspondents based in London discuss the week's international news.
• The Travel Show – A unique insight into the world of travel.
• HARDtalk – In-depth interviews with famous personalities from all walks of life.
• Newsnight – A weekly round up of news and current affairs hosted by Evan Davis.
• Our World – Documentary series.
• Panorama – Current affairs programme, featuring interviews and investigative reports on a wide variety of subjects.
• Politics Europe – Monthly programme usually broadcast on a Friday which covers political news across Europe, analysing both the situation in Brussels as well as within individual European nations. Filmed in exactly the same format as the BBC Two programme, the Daily Politics, presented by Andrew Neil or Jo Coburn. Also broadcast on BBC Parliament.
• Reporters – A weekly showcase of the best reports from the BBC's global network of correspondents.
• Talking Movies – A guide to film, from Hollywood blockbusters to documentaries and world cinema.

World News bulletins

The BBC newsroom at Broadcasting House in London

Half-hour BBC World News bulletins are made available to Public Broadcasting Service stations in the US through Los Angeles' KCET, a non-commercial independent public television station which has been separate from PBS since the beginning of 2011 due to a rights fee dispute. 80 to 90% of Americans are able to receive the bulletins, though broadcast times vary between different localities. The programme is broadcast on several PBS stations in markets such as New York City and Washington DC.

On PBS stations, BBC World News is not broadcast with traditional commercials (the breaks are filled with news stories) but omits the Met Office international weather forecast at the end of the programme, replacing it with underwriting announcements. The PBS broadcasts are tape-delayed on some stations.

BBC America were aired a three-hour block of BBC World News programmes from 05:00 to 08:00 on weekdays. Met Office forecasts are removed, and it is broadcast with advertisements.

Many airlines from across the world also play pre-recorded extracts of the BBC World News, have text headlines from it or have a full bulletin available on the in-flight entertainment systems.

Part of the countdown sequence in 2013, showing Broadcasting House

BBC World News is, for the most part, the same channel all over the world; the commercials are intended to be the only differences. However, there are some regional programming variations. For example, a number of programmes are made exclusively for regional viewings, such as Indian feeds, and The Record Europe, which is only broadcast in Europe. Also, the weather forecasts focus more on the area the viewer is watching from.

On most feeds of BBC World News, when there are no commercials being inserted by the cable or satellite provider similar to other channels, the break filler shows promotions for upcoming programmes on the channel. During BBC News, a news story that has not been promoted airs during what would be the commercial break. This is the case on the broadband versions of BBC World News, and on versions of BBC World News aired in the US on Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) stations. However, there are some global commercials and sponsorships which air throughout the network.

On 11 September 2007, the break filler was redesigned and now more closely resembles previous versions. The promotional videos now fill the entire screen and are interspersed with news and market updates, schedules, and other information. There is also no longer a unifying music composition. Instead, each 20-second promotional video uses music selected from a handful of themes, which have some unifying musical characteristics. The information screens, such as the 10-second plug for the website or YouTube channel, and the 15-second weather/time/coming up screens each feature their own theme. The colour theme was updated following the relaunch of the channel in April 2008.

Since its inception, and more so since its extensive association with the BBC News channel, the countdown to the hourly news bulletin has been a feature of the channel's presentation, accompanied by music composed by David Lowe. The current style of countdown features reporters and technical staff in many different locations working to bring news stories to air. The countdown can range from 45 seconds to as little as 3 seconds.

BBC World News was named Best International News Channel at the Association for International Broadcasting Awards in November 2006.[28] It won a Peabody Award in 2007 for White Horse Village[29] and another in 2009 for Where Giving Life is a Death Sentence.[30]

• Official website