BBC blind to religion, says Archbishop of York

The BBC suffers from an “appalling lack of spiritual literacy”, the Archbishop of York, Stephen Cottrell, has said.

In a discussion hosted by the Religion Media Centre, the Archbishop said that the corporation should re-think its attitude to spiritual broadcasting, implying it needed not only additional funding, but to be more embedded throughout the BBC’s core content.

In short, it shouldn’t just be broadcasting Songs of Praise as a box-ticking exercise.

“My concern is rather more concerning the place of faith across the entire output of the BBC, somewhat than simply seeing it as religious broadcasting in that somewhat more narrow definition. So I note with sadness and a few distress the sometimes appalling lack of spiritual literacy in a lot of the BBC,” he said.

His comments come at a time when the BBC is facing a government consultation over its future, as its current Royal Charter is attributable to expire at the top of 2027.

The BBC has at times been criticised for either misunderstanding or diverting attention away from Christianity.

The government’s green paper on the BBC’s future has stated that not only should it proceed to broadcast religious programmes, but its approach should represent a multi-faith society and depict faith in other contexts, akin to dramas, documentaries and discussion programmes.

Cottrell argued that improved religious programming would help promote social cohesion.

“I realize it’s a tough thing to fight for – religious broadcasting and public service broadcasting – but I feel it’s a precious bulwark against polarisation, intolerance, prejudice, chaos. The fact is that religion is a crucial a part of how tens of millions and tens of millions of individuals in Britain today get their belonging, their values, their purpose, their identity,” he said.

He added, “Religious broadcasting increasingly becomes the poor and underfunded relative in a BBC which I feel must be reminded of its core business.”