Rachel Jupp has been appointed the BBC’s director of news and current affairs, taking charge of the corporation’s newsroom at a time when it is working through job cuts, an unresolved pay dispute and a deep internal argument about how its journalism should operate in an increasingly digital landscape.
Jupp was seen conducting a tour of the news floor on Monday afternoon, engaging in what were described as polite but brief exchanges with staff in “the pit” — the newsroom’s own name for the space deep inside New Broadcasting House. The visit offered a small sign of direction for journalists who had gone almost a year without a permanent leader following the sudden resignation of her predecessor, Deborah Turness.
Frustration had been building among staff waiting for a clear strategy. One journalist said the newsroom simply needed “a set direction of travel” — “a north star, as startups call it” — adding that a timeline should be laid out showing which cuts were coming and what needed to be done.
Figures across the corporation acknowledge that Jupp has taken on a substantial challenge. Running what is arguably the world’s most closely scrutinised newsroom is difficult under any circumstances, and the pay and job-loss turmoil adds to the pressure.
Jupp assumes the role as BBC News navigates an anxious debate over the position of its journalism as audiences shift online. The broadcaster’s traditional strengths — impartiality, authority and a focus on television and radio — now compete with content creators and a range of other established media outlets, all converging on a small number of smartphone apps.
Inside BBC News, a string of announcements about programme closures and changes in strategy have fed a “clicks versus public service” argument. Competing opinions exist over how the BBC ought to adapt its output for commercially driven digital platforms popular with younger audiences, while holding to its founding remit of informing the public.
Roger Mosey, the former head of BBC TV News, said the director general, Matt Brittin, and the deputy director general, Rhodri Talfan Davies, had told people they wanted the incoming director of news to “restore the authority of BBC News”.
“I think that’s what a lot of us have been arguing for,” Mosey said. “BBC News does all sorts of good things and it’s generally an impartial and fair service. But it hasn’t been able to translate the authority of the really big brands of TV and radio into an online world.”
Those worried the corporation is losing its bearings point to a BBC website article about penis fillers and to recent social videos showing reporters holding cheap microphones in a content-creator style. They also fear that flagship output such as the Today programme or the 10 O’Clock News, which still draw large audiences, has not been nourished or championed online.
Those advocating a faster embrace of new platforms argue that is plainly where audiences are heading, and that the broadcaster’s obligation to serve everyone sits at the centre of its public service remit. As one BBC figure put it, “Rachel’s task and challenge is to show how we can do what every news organisation is having to do — go digital, without becoming a value-free click factory.”
It was above all Jupp’s readiness to accept such a precarious task that earned her the promotion. While Brittin, a relatively new director general, inherited many of the cuts being announced across the BBC, it was his decision to appoint Jupp. During an all-staff call this week, he said he wanted the organisation to be “a bit more Elvis — a little less conversation, a little more action”. In Jupp, Brittin believes he has found one of his strongest Elvis impersonators, willing to make the changes the digital era demands.
Jupp secured the role from a shortlist of four candidates. There was acknowledgement that one rival, Jonathan Munro, had avoided major crises during his time as interim head of BBC News — no small feat given recent criticisms. Ultimately the contest came down to Jupp and Esme Wren, editor of Channel 4 News. Wren was regarded as a formidable champion of journalists and journalism, but the conclusion was that the BBC’s news operation already produces plenty of high-quality, award-winning material.
Jupp had not previously run a large organisation — something Brittin had been seeking — but the director general believed she possessed two key qualities. The first was sound editorial judgment, a requirement following bruising criticism over a Gaza documentary that had to be withdrawn and a spliced-together Trump speech that triggered a multibillion-dollar lawsuit. After the Gaza row, Jupp had been given responsibility for overseeing the BBC’s documentary and long-form journalism, and was therefore viewed as someone who would protect the broadcaster’s authority as it moved further into digital content.
Her second quality was an appetite for transformation — the shorthand for the enormous task of moving BBC journalism onto new digital platforms without surrendering its authority, a project considered at best a work in progress. Jupp has also been central to the BBC’s use of generative AI, and Brittin, a former Google executive, believes it can play a larger role if deployed correctly.
Jupp was additionally helped by being able to start almost straight away, given the speed at which a cash crisis is forcing the BBC into major strategic decisions. She begins her tenure with another underrated advantage: she is genuinely liked by close colleagues and respected by journalists who have worked with her previously at Channel 4 News, Newsnight and Panorama. As her tour of the pit demonstrated, starting with the backing of her staff is viewed as essential as she undertakes a transformation of BBC News that will involve difficult and unpopular choices.
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