BBC World News facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
BBC News

Country	United Kingdom
Broadcast area	Worldwide (except UK)
Network	BBC News
Headquarters	Broadcasting House
Programming
Language(s)	English
Picture format	HDTV (clearer picture) (also available in SDTV for older TVs)
Ownership
Owner	BBC Studios (BBC Global News Ltd)
Sister channels	See list
History
Launched	16 January 1995; 30 years ago (1995-01-16)
Former names	BBC World (1995–2008) BBC World News (2008–2023)
Availability
Terrestrial
Boxer TV Access (Sweden)	Channel 27
RiksTV (Norway)	Channel 55
Digital terrestrial television (Andorra)	Channel 20
ERT Digital (Greece)	Channel 48 Channel 56 (HD)
GOtv Africa	Channel 40
Digital terrestrial television (Mauritius)	Channel 2
Nexmedia (Indonesia)	Channel 703
Oqaab (Afghanistan)	Channel 43

BBC News (which used to be called BBC World News) is a TV channel that broadcasts news in English all around the world. It is owned by BBC Global News Ltd., which is part of BBC Studios. The channel is run by the BBC News team. It shows news reports, documentaries, and other factual programs. Its main studios are in London, Washington, D.C., and Singapore. Since April 2023, this channel mostly shares its programs with the BBC News channel that is shown in the UK.

The channel first started on 11 March 1991 as BBC World Service Television for viewers outside Europe. Its name changed to BBC World on 16 January 1995. Then, on 21 April 2008, it became BBC World News. Finally, on 3 April 2023, it was renamed BBC News (International) when it joined up with the UK's BBC News Channel. The BBC says that its international news channels reach a huge audience, with about 99 million viewers each week in 2016–2017.

Unlike the BBC's channels in the UK, this international channel gets its money from subscriptions and advertising. It does not use the TV licence fee that people in the UK pay. Because of this, the channel is not usually shown directly in the UK. However, some of its programs are sometimes shown on the UK's BBC News channel, especially late at night. Also, some UK programs like Click and HARDtalk are shown on the international channel.

In April 2023, the BBC started to combine the programs and presenters of its two news channels. This was part of a bigger plan to make the BBC's operations more efficient. Both channels now use the "BBC News" brand. Even with these changes, the international channel still has ads. The UK BBC News channel can still show different programs for UK-specific news.

History

The channel began as BBC World Service Television. It was a business operation. The British government decided not to pay for this new TV service with public money. (The BBC World Service radio was funded by the government until 2014.) The TV channel started broadcasting on 11 March 1991. At first, it was a half-hour news report once a day at 7:00 PM GMT.

On 26 January 1995, BBC World Service Television was split into two separate channels:

• BBC World started broadcasting on 16 January 1995. It became a 24-hour English news channel that was free to watch internationally.
• BBC Prime started broadcasting on 30 January 1995. This channel showed entertainment programs from the BBC. It was later renamed BBC Entertainment.

BBC World changed its on-screen look a lot on 3 April 2000. It started to look more like its sister channel in the UK, which was then called BBC News 24. The new look used red and cream colors. The music was created by David Lowe. It had a unique "drums and beeps" style, which was different from the orchestral music often used by other news programs.

On 8 December 2003, the channel had another small update to its look. It still used the "drums and beeps" music. The main colors became black and red. Later in 2004, the channel's slogan became Putting News First. This replaced its older slogan, Demand a Broader View.

The channel's current name, BBC World News, was introduced on 21 April 2008. This was part of a big update to all of the BBC's news channels. BBC World News later moved to a newly designed studio. New graphics were made, and David Lowe updated the music.

Moving to Broadcasting House

BBC World News moved to Broadcasting House on 14 January 2013. Before this, it was located at Television Centre. This move was part of a plan to bring BBC News and other BBC departments into one building in Central London. Broadcasting House was updated to include a new newsroom and modern studios.

Joining with the UK BBC News channel

On 26 May 2022, the BBC announced plans to combine the UK BBC News channel with BBC World News. This was part of a plan to make the BBC more efficient. The UK and international channels would share more of their programs. They would still be able to show different content when needed. The BBC said this new service would have "new main programs" with well-known journalists. To get ready, the BBC added more staff to its office in Washington, D.C..

The first part of these changes happened on 3 April 2023. The BBC World News channel changed its name to BBC News. It also started to combine its programs and presenters with the UK BBC News channel. This meant that some jobs changed, including those of some presenters. Even with these changes, the international BBC News channel still shows ads. It also still has different programs for viewers outside the UK. For example, it does not show the UK's BBC One news or Newsnight.

Broadcasting

Live news programs are made in studios in Broadcasting House in London. Some recorded programs come from other studios in London, and from Singapore and Washington. The BBC World News newsroom is now part of the main BBC Newsroom in Broadcasting House. This newsroom also handles BBC World Service radio and UK news.

Logo used from 2008 to 2019

Logo used from 2019 to 2022

Logo used from 2022 to 2023

The channel used to broadcast in a 4:3 screen shape. On 13 January 2009, BBC World News started broadcasting in 16:9 widescreen format. This change happened first in Europe. The channel stopped broadcasting on older analogue satellite systems on 18 April 2006.

High-definition (HD)

When BBC World News moved to Broadcasting House, it got new studios and equipment. This allowed it to broadcast in high-definition (HD), which means a much clearer picture. On 5 August 2013, BBC World News became available in HD in the Middle East. On 1 April 2015, BBC World News in English started broadcasting in HD for free in Europe and parts of North Africa.

Around the world

BBC World News says that about 74 million people watch it every week in over 200 countries. It is often available as a free-to-air (FTA) channel, meaning you don't have to pay extra for it. You can watch it through cable, satellite, internet TV (IPTV), and streaming services.

In the United States, you can watch the channel through providers like Cablevision, Comcast, Spectrum, and Verizon Fios. A company called AMC Networks helps distribute the channel and sells its ads in the US.

BBC World News also shares its daytime and evening news programs with public television stations across the US. This means that local public TV channels can show BBC news. Since June 2019, a station in Washington, D.C. called WETA handles the distribution of these programs.

In 2021, China blocked BBC World News. Before this, access was already very limited, and parts of the show were often blacked out by censors. The channel was blocked because of its reports on the Uyghur genocide. This was also in response to China's own news channel, CGTN, being blocked in the UK.

Online

The channel is available online in the US as part of Sling's World News package.

In the United Kingdom

TV platforms in the UK (like Freeview, Sky, Virgin) do not officially offer BBC World News as a full-time channel. This is because it shows advertisements. The BBC's channels in the UK are paid for by the TV licence fee. However, you can sometimes watch BBC World News in the UK if you have certain satellite systems. It is also available in some hotels in London and in the public areas of Broadcasting House.

Some BBC World News programs are officially available to UK viewers. These programs are shown on the BBC's UK channels. You can also watch some of them online on BBC iPlayer. From midnight to 5:00 AM UK time, the news reports on BBC World News are also shown on the BBC News Channel. Some business and sports programs are also shared between the channels. For example, The Briefing and Business Briefing are shown on BBC One and the BBC News channel at 5:00 AM UK time.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, more programs were shared between BBC News and BBC World News. This sharing became permanent in August 2020. Now, the two channels often show the same programs during certain hours of the day and night.

Programming

BBC News shows a variety of programs. Here are some of them:

Live news programs:

• BBC News – International news.
• Live – International news, including business and sport.
• Impact – Global news, especially how it affects people in Asia.
• Global – International news and analysis.
• Outside Source – Discussions and analysis of news topics.
• Newsday – Live from Singapore, with news and analysis from Asia and around the world.
• BBC World News America – News from America and around the world, live from the BBC's Washington DC office.
• Focus on Africa – The main African news program, with news, business, and sport from the continent.
• The Context – Reports on international news, focusing on the UK, Europe, and the US.
• World News Today – A daily news program with deep analysis. It focuses on the UK, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.
• The Briefing – News, business, and sport.
• Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg - Interviews and analysis of the week's big news from the UK and around the world.

Live business and sport programs:

• Worklife
• World Business Report
• Asia Business Report – live from Singapore.
• Sport Today – International sports news and results.

Pre-recorded programs:

• Click – A technology program for people who are not experts.
• Dateline London – Foreign journalists in London discuss the week's international news.
• The Travel Show
• HARDtalk – In-depth interviews with famous people from all areas of life.
• Newsnight – Weekly highlights from the daily UK news program.
• Our World – Documentaries.
• Panorama – A current affairs program with interviews and investigative reports.
• Reporters – Weekly reports from the BBC's journalists.
• Talking Movies

BBC News reports

Half-hour BBC News reports are available to PBS stations in the US. These reports do not have regular commercials. Instead, the breaks are filled with more news stories. They also do not show the international weather forecast.

Many airlines around the world also show parts of BBC News. They might have pre-recorded clips, text headlines, or a full news report available on their in-flight entertainment systems.

Previous reports

Another BBC World News program, BBC World News America, used to be shown on BBC America. Later, it was only shown on BBC World and local PBS stations in the US as a 30-minute program.

The channel also made short news reports for public transport services in Singapore and Hong Kong. These reports were updated twice a day. They have since been replaced by similar programs from another news channel.

Travellers on the Heathrow Express train service in London could watch a summary of headlines from BBC World News on screens.

News presenters

Former presenters

How it looks and sounds

BBC News is mostly the same channel everywhere in the world. The only differences are usually the commercials. However, there are some small program changes for different regions. For example, some programs are made only for viewers in India. Also, the weather forecasts focus more on the area where the viewer is watching.

On most versions of BBC News, when there are no commercials, the channel shows promotions for upcoming programs. During the news, a news story that hasn't been promoted might play during what would be an ad break. This happens on the online versions of BBC News and on versions shown on PBS stations in the US. However, there are some global commercials and sponsorships that are shown everywhere.

Since it started, the countdown to the hourly news report has been a special part of the channel. It has music composed by David Lowe. The current countdown shows reporters and technical staff working in different places to bring news stories to air. The countdown can be short or long, from 3 to 45 seconds.

Awards

BBC World News was named Best International News Channel at the Association for International Broadcasting Awards in November 2006. It also won a Peabody Award in 2007 for a program called White Horse Village. It won another Peabody Award in 2009 for Where Giving Life is a Death Sentence.

Images for kids

• 

  The BBC newsroom at Broadcasting House in London.

See also

In Spanish: BBC News (canal de televisión internacional) para niños