Convention Programme

 

Click here to download the full programme.

 

Wednesday 15 September

08:30   Accommodation Registration opens                                      King’s College

08:30   Delegate registration opens                                                    Concert Hall
 

10:15   Convention Opens                                                                        Concert Hall

Welcome by Jane Turton RTS Chair

 

10.20   Session 1: Broadcast Britain

Ben McOwen Wilson, YouTube Managing Director UK and Ireland, will set the scene for the Convention with a wide-ranging look at the challenges and opportunities for the UK’s television industry post-Brexit, post-pandemic and in the face of accelerating technological and viewer behaviour shifts.  He will ask the question, how can - and how must - television redefine itself and its sense of "Britishness" to create a platform for global success and for reconnection with domestic audiences.

Speaker

Ben McOwen Wilson, Managing Director, YouTube UK and Ireland

 

 

10.40   Session 2: International Keynote: Robert Kyncl

Robert Kyncl, YouTube's Chief Business Officer for more than a decade, will explore the global rise of the Creator economy, the creative competition he sees globally and the trend for more creative talent to be going direct to audiences bypassing traditional models, and share his thoughts on what this means for television as we know it. 

Chair

Ranvir Singh, Presenter and Political Editor, Good Morning Britain

Speaker

Robert Kyncl, Chief Business Officer, YouTube

 

11.10   Session 3: International Keynote: Dana Strong

The new Group Chief Executive at Sky talks to Beth Rigby about her ambitions for the company.

Chair

Beth Rigby, Political Editor, Sky News

Speaker

Dana Strong, CEO, Sky

 

11.40   Coffee

 

12.05   Session 4: This Disunited Kingdom

In a year of a Labour Wales, Tory England and SNP Scotland, what does Britishness mean now and in the future?   And how can, and should, the British media react?   The PSBs are rapidly spreading production round the country.    What does this mean for the industry?   Is it too late to save UK plc?   Top pollster and TV pundit Professor Sir John Curtice will put a series of scenarios to a panel of industry leaders to explore their personal and professional views of Britishness and the fragmenting media landscape.

Chair

Kirsty Wark, Journalist and Writer

Speakers

Chris Banatvala, Consultant

Professor Sir John Curtice, Professor of Politics, University of Strathclyde

Alex Mahon, CEO, Channel 4

Rhodri Talfan Davies, Director of Nations, BBC

John Whiston, Managing Director, Continuing Drama and Head of ITV in the North, ITV Studios

 

13.05   Pinewood TV Studios Welcome Lunch

 

14.35   Session 5: UK Keynote: Richard Sharp

Chairman of the BBC since February, Richard Sharp gives his first speech to the RTS and talks to economist Stephanie Flanders about the global challenges and opportunities facing the corporation.

Chair

Stephanie Flanders, Senior Executive Editor for Economics, Bloomberg News

Speaker

Richard Sharp, Chairman, BBC

 

15.05   Session 6: UK Keynote: Carolyn McCall

The ITV CEO speaks to journalist Dharshini David about the business and public service challenges ahead for the broadcaster.

Chair

Dharshini David, Senior Correspondent & Presenter, BBC News

Speaker

Carolyn McCall, CEO, ITV

 

15.35   Tea

 

16.00   Session 7: Global Leaders Keynote: Hillary Rodham Clinton and Chelsea Clinton

HiddenLight was launched by Hillary Rodham Clinton, Sam Branson and Chelsea Clinton to celebrate the best of the human spirit and help audiences see the world in new ways. Hillary Rodham Clinton and Chelsea Clinton join us live to talk about their inspiration for setting up a global studio and the vision for HiddenLight's content.  HiddenLight's founders talk about what they see in the world, the stories that fascinate them, and how HiddenLight facilitates their global approach to storytelling. 

Chair

Professor Mary Beard, Professor of Classics, University of Cambridge

Speakers

Chelsea Clinton, HiddenLight

Hillary Rodham Clinton, HiddenLight

 

16.30   Session 8: Global Leaders Keynote: Kevin Mayer

Kevin Mayer talks Disney, disruption, deals and the dynamics of his new media career.

Chair

Jake Kanter, Media Correspondent, The Times

Speaker

Kevin Mayer, Chairman of the Board of Directors, DAZN Group

 

17.05   Session 9: UK Keynote: Alex Mahon

The Channel 4 CEO speaks with Gillian Joseph about the challenges for the channel in the face of pending privatisation plans.

Chair

Gillian Joseph, Presenter, Sky News

Speaker

Alex Mahon, CEO, Channel 4

 

17.35   Session 10: Secretary of State Keynote

John Whittingdale, the current Minister of State for Media and Data, has been able to step in to deliver this evening’s speech on behalf of Oliver Dowden, who has a new role.

Chair

Ben McOwen Wilson, Managing Director, YouTube UK and Ireland

Speaker

John Whittingdale, Minister of State for Media and Data

 

18:10   End of Day One

 

19.15   BBC Studios Drinks Reception                                              King’s College

 

20.00   Accenture Dinner                                                                    King’s College

After Dinner Speaker – Omid Djalili

 

22.00   Korn Ferry Nightcap                                                               King’s College

 

Thursday 16 September

09.00   Opening                                                                                   Concert Hall

 

09.10   Session 11: UK Keynote: Tim Davie

BBC Director General in conversation with new ITN CEO Deborah Turness about how he looks back on his first year in post and what the future years hold.

Chair

Deborah Turness, CEO, ITN

Speaker

Tim Davie, Director General, BBC

 

09.40   Session 12: Global Leaders Keynote: Lutz Schueler

Lutz Schueler reflects on the first 100 days of the O2 merger with Virgin and discusses future strategy.

Chair

John Gapper, Business Columnist, Financial Times

Speaker

Lutz Schueler, CEO, Virgin Media O2

 

10.00   Session 13: Fake News: The Broadcasters’ Dilemma

From damned lies to a little doubt, fake news is a minefield for the broadcaster and still a relatively new area in journalism.  Faced with an ongoing tension between covering it and amplifying it, how do we navigate the editorial difficulties involved?  And when those who fall for it mistrust those calling it out, can anything be done to stop our journalists becoming the targets of abuse?  With an expert panel routinely faced with decisions about how to cover fake news, we’ll consider the pitfalls, the ethics and the psychology behind one of the most insidious disrupters in the modern world.

Chair

Naga Munchetty, Journalist and Presenter, BBC Breakfast

Speakers

Sander van der Linden, Professor of Social Psychology in Society and Director of the Cambridge Social Decision Making Lab, University of Cambridge

Matthew Price, Editor, Data and Forensics Unit, Sky News

Marianna Spring, Specialist Disinformation and Social Media Reporter, BBC News

Deborah Turness, CEO, ITN

 

11.00   Coffee

 

11.20   Session 14: Public Service Broadcasting: Facing Failure or the Future?

How radical do we have to be to protect public service broadcasting? Ex BBC and New York Times boss Mark Thompson argues that PSB will die in the UK unless huge change happens. In this session, Mark lays out where he thinks things went wrong and challenges the industry to get a grip and save itself. Can the UK's big players really take on the streamers? Can TV continue to represent Britain? Does the government need to intervene to prevent a market failure? What will things look like in ten years' time? Mark will debate his solutions with a distinguished panel. 

Chair

Kirsty Wark, Journalist and Writer

Introduction

Mark Thompson, CEO, Ancestry.com

Speakers

Maria Kyriacou, President, ViacomCBS Networks UK, Australia and Israel

Alex Mahon, CEO, Channel 4

Fraser Nelson, Editor, The Spectator

 

12.15   Session 15: UK Keynote: Melanie Dawes

The Ofcom Chief Executive in conversation with journalist Clive Myrie about the future of public service broadcasting and how to respond to the rapidly changing media landscape.

Chair

Clive Myrie, Journalist, BBC News    

Speaker

Dame Melanie Dawes, Chief Executive, Ofcom

 

12.50   Session 16: Twenty Percent

Disabled people make up 20% of the population in the UK and yet are still the most underrepresented in our industry. In this session leading disabled media professionals come together to talk about the progress made in representation of disabled people in the industry so far, the shifts needed to increase representation and discuss how inclusion should be normalised in the industry.

Chair

Sinead Burke, Founder and CEO, Tilting The Lens

Speakers

Alicia Dalrymple, Junior Production Manager

David Proud, Actor, Writer and Director

Briony May Williams, Presenter

 

13.30   Lunch                                                                                      King’s College
 

15.00   Session 17: Toxic

Ben McOwen Wilson introduces a carefully assembled piece of work which exposes the toxicity of bullying in the television industry; in our time and on our watch.

Speaker

Ben McOwen Wilson, Managing Director, YouTube UK and Ireland

 

15.20   Session 18: Production’s Coming Home?

We are in a golden age for UK TV production. Global demand for production skills and talent has never been higher. However, is there a risk that our production industry is becoming a lower cost extension of the US studio system for streaming platforms? And would it matter if it did? A panel of leaders from the UK production sector and Netflix consider the rapid changes in the market and explore their possible longer term impacts on audiences, broadcasters and producers.

Chair
Lorraine Heggessey, Chair, Grierson Trust and Advisor, Channel 4 Growth Fund

Speakers

Ralph Lee, Chief Executive, Production, BBC Studios

Brandon Riegg, VP, Unscripted and Documentary Series, Netflix

Sanjay Singhal, Chief Executive, Voltage TV

Jane Turton, CEO, All3Media

 

16.05   Tea
 

16.25   Session 19: Global Leaders Keynote: Casey Bloys

Casey Bloys, Chief Content Officer for HBO and HBO Max, will discuss programming strategy and goals to expand WarnerMedia’s slate of originals. Casey has overseen all programming at HBO for the past five years, and last year, expanded his purview to the new streaming service, HBO Max. He will also discuss the international expansion of HBO Max and the opportunity to forge new connections within the international creative community.

Chair

John Gapper, Business Columnist, Financial Times

Speaker

Casey Bloys, Chief Content Officer, HBO and HBO Max

 

16.45   Session 20: Gareth Southgate in conversation with Clare Balding

Following the England team's success at the European Championships, Gareth Southgate, in conversation with Clare Balding, reflects on the power of football to unite a nation, to promote inclusion and be a force for redefinition of nationhood.  What lessons for British television in 2021, and what better close to our 2021 Convention. 

Chair

Clare Balding, Broadcaster and Author

Speaker

Gareth Southgate OBE, England Manager

 

17.15   Convention Closes

Ben McOwen Wilson, Managing Director, YouTube UK and Ireland

Theresa Wise, Chief Executive, RTS

 

Keeping you safe at RTS Cambridge 2021

We know a number of you may have concerns about attending an in-person gathering. We have taken these into account and have measures put in place to keep you safe, which you can read about here.

RTS Cambridge Convention - Our Commitment to Sustainability

The RTS is committed to sustainability at the Convention. For Covid safety reasons we’re unable to provide the usual china during the breaks and instead are using Earthpac certified compostable and biodegradable paper cups which will be collected and separated by the catering team.

The RTS is offsetting the greenhouse gas emissions from our Convention. Through Carbon Footprint Ltd, we are supporting a programme that combines planting trees across the UK with an internationally verified reduced deforestation initiative in the Brazilian Amazon.

By supporting these projects, we will be avoiding and removing carbon, planting and protecting forests and enhancing biodiversity in two continents.