Save the BBC!

I've received this from a few friends so I'm passing in on to you. Please read it and sign the petition if you agree. Our voice is a very strong tool against these ruthless business people. Thanks for listening.
Ciao


Dear friends,

The BBC is considering sweeping cuts, cutting its website in half and dropping TV and radio stations. The reason: to enrich corporate media. According to a story in the Times, the proposal is a bid to "shrink" in order to "appease the BBC's rivals." If this goes forward, it's a giveaway to Rupert Murdoch, who sees the BBC as a threat to his profits. The BBC is a global treasure. Public outcry has prevented BBC cuts before, now we can save it again! Sign the petition and pass it along -- let's get to 100,000 signatures before we deliver it to the BBC Trust later this week, so they know the UK, and the world, want the Beeb to stand strong:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/save_the_bbc/?vl

The BBC isn't perfect, but the people pushing for these cuts want to destroy it, not to improve it. The Times, owned by media baron Rupert Murdoch, responded by calling for further cuts such as closing Radio 1. Last autumn, Rupert's son James Murdoch gave a speech calling for the BBC to be forced to become "far, far smaller". Today's cuts are proposed in a "strategic review" written by John Tate -- co-author of the Conservative Party's manifesto, and now a BBC executive. If the goal is to reduce competition to corporate media outfits, this may just be the beginning. Murdoch -- the global media magnate -- has long seen the BBC as his biggest rival, and his media outlets have assaulted the Labor government. Now, with the recession hurting profits and a UK election coming soon, he and his allies are on the attack. We need greater investment in quality and originality by the BBC, not death by a thousand cuts. Let's raise all our voices to protect the Beeb, and deliver an overwhelming number of signatures to the BBC Trust this week -- sign and spread the word to everyone:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/save_the_bbc/?vl