EC3-LIKE ENGLISH TEST

UNIT 2: BBC
ACADEMIC THEMES: Identity and Exchanges – Private and public spheres

AIMS:
- To be able to work in limited time
- To cross examine the documents of a dossier
- To be able to set your arguments about an issue

RESULTS

LISTENING

READING

WRITING
Part 1 : LISTENING
- Write a report about the document you’ve just heard, in French.
TIP: Focus on SIGNIFICANT details

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Part 2 : READING COMPREHENSION
1- Present the text in your own words (type, topic, date, tone)

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2 - True or false. Justify by quoting from the text when it’s false. T F
a) The BBC has made sure Tim Davie doesn’t have to deal with past issues.  

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b) Official actions gave 84 women pay increases between July 2017 and MARCH 2020 

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c) Official cases of pay disputes are called Equal pay disputes.  

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d) The Equal Pay scandal also provoked several unofficial pay arrangements.  

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e) Internal emails were threatened to leak during the scandal.  

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3 - Pick out the adjective that best describes the way the BBC deals with the problem.
Justify by quoting from the text.
Politically correct – Honest – Fair – Inhuman - Hypocritical

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4 - In your own words, explain what the journalist implies by saying: “However, these
figures have been aided by the removal of high-earning male actors who make shows for the
BBC’s drama department as they are now classed as working for a commercial organization.”
(l.30-32)

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Part 3 : WRITING
Choose one of the following subjects [150 words +/- %]
a) Creative Writing
“ … according to a freedom of information request made by Caroline Barlow, a former
BBC employee” (l.8-9). Caroline Barlow is willing to raise awareness about women’s
working conditions in the company as the 100th anniversary of the BBC channels is
coming up. Write her speech to announce her intentions
b) Essay
“The BBC has been keen to promote its progress on equalising pay for on-air stars who
take home more than £150,000 a year from the corporation” (l.23-24). Can money or
fame buy happiness? Discuss in a well-organized essay.

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 BBC has given rises to 700 female staff since start of pay scandal
Jim Waterson Media editor - @jimwaterson
Mon 14 Sep 2020, THE GUARDIAN

The BBC has given pay rises to more than 700 female employees since the start of its equal pay
scandal, as the broadcaster looks to draw a line1 under the issue.

As the corporation prepares to unveil its first annual report under its new director general, Tim Davie,
on Tuesday, the BBC has been rushing to settle most of the remaining equal pay cases in an attempt
5 to give the new boss a clean slate on an issue that infuriated staff and damaged the corporation’s
reputation.

In total at least 84 women were given pay increases through formal processes between July 2017 and
March 2020, according to a freedom of information request made by Caroline Barlow, a former BBC
employee who received £130,000 in an equal pay dispute. During the same time period 608 women
10 received a pay revision or increase through an informal pay enquiry process started in the wake of the
equal pay scandal. The BBC said not all of these cases related to women being paid less than men and
an unknown number of men had also seen their pay increase through the same procedure.

In the most high-profile case, Newswatch presenter Samira Ahmed successfully took the BBC to an
employment tribunal to seek more than £700,000 in back pay after she was paid substantially less than
15 Jeremy Vine for presenting an equivalent programme. The hearings were deeply embarrassing for the
BBC, as internal emails about pay negotiations were made public.

New deals over the summer have now pushed the combined number of equal pay settlements and pay
revisions for women to over 700, according to sources at the corporation. Following these recent
settlements there are now fewer than 10 equal pay cases outstanding but there is still concern among
20 staff that in some cases women are still earning less than the men they are managing. The BBC is still
braced2 for the imminent publication of an investigation by the Equality and Human Rights Commission
into its historic pay practices.

The BBC has been keen to promote its progress on equalising pay for on-air stars who take home more
than £150,000 a year from the corporation. When these figures were first made public in 2017, at the
25 behest3 of the Conservative government, they revealed that just a third of top-earning presenters were
women.

The fall-out4 resulted in many high-earning men such as Chris Evans and Jeremy Vine either departing
the corporation or taking substantial pay cuts. BBC sources say the new annual report will show that
45% of top-earning presenters are now women, including the likes of 6Music presenter Lauren Laverne.

30 However, these figures have been aided by the removal of high-earning male actors who make shows
for the BBC’s drama department as they are now classed as working for a commercial organisation.
Match of the Day’s Gary Lineker is expected to top the list yet again.

BBC sources have already made it clear that they will force presenters to declare external income, in a
bid to curb moonlighting5 on behalf of corporate brands. Many BBC stars are regulars on the events
35 circuit, hosting interviews at away days – although this has come under growing scrutiny after North
America editor Jon Sopel gave a talk to tobacco firm Philip Morris and BBC Breakfast host Naga
Munchetty undertook promotions for NatWest and Aston Martin.

In another incident, Boris Johnson confirmed he was running for the Conservative party leadership in
2019 while being interviewed by News At Ten host Huw Edwards at an insurance industry conference
40 in Manchester. This left the BBC trying to report on a scoop obtained by one of its most high-profile
journalists in his spare time. […]

This article was amended on 14 September 2020. It originally stated that all 608 pay increases for
women achieved through an informal review process related to equal pay claims. The BBC has said this
is the number of women who received a pay increase through the pay review process but not all were
relating to equal pay.

1: To make it come to an end – 2: prepared – 3: as ordered by – 4: argument, dispute – 5: illegal work