The BBC Bump

It seems that doing straight news without the partisan opinion seems to be working well for the BBC.

With Russia invasion of Ukraine, many people are looking for “real news” and not a bunch of talking heads. That has the BBC seeing huge bumps in viewership.

Variety reports that the BBC Russian news website more than tripled its year-to-date weekly average, with a reach of 10.7 million people in the last week, compared to 3.1 million, according to data released by the BBC on Wednesday. The live page in Russian covering the invasion was the most visited site across the whole of the BBC World Service’s non-English language services, with 5.3 million views.

In English, bbc.com visitors in Russia soared 252%.

Tim Davie, BBC director general, said “It’s often said truth is the first casualty of war. In a conflict where disinformation and propaganda is rife, there is a clear need for factual and independent news people can trust – and in a significant development, millions more Russians are turning to the BBC. We will continue giving the Russian people access to the truth, however we can.”

“Brave and committed journalists — from a range of news organizations — are doing vital work reporting events in Ukraine,” Davie added. “Not only those who have travelled there to report, but journalists for whom Ukraine is home, including our talented colleagues in the BBC’s Ukrainian service. Events are moving quickly. We want to ensure the BBC’s output continues to reach people in Ukraine, Russia and beyond. Trusted news has never been more vital.”