BBC will be axing Newsround’s afternoon edition after almost 50 years. The move comes as audiences for its bulletins continue to decline during the pandemic lockdown and an increasing number of young viewers switch to watching it online.
Now, BBC plans on shifting more of its children’s content online, aiming to put a stop to declining TV viewing numbers among young people.
Ofcom approved the broadcaster’s plans after BBC expressed its interest to expand the range of content on the Newsround website with digital audiences rising by a quarter over the first three months of lockdown.
This means that BBC can also slash the after-school Newsround bulletin, a hallmark of the show which first aired on April 4, 1972.
Apart from these changes, Newsround editor Paul Plunkett has announced that Newsround will be hiring its first full-time environmental journalist, launch a new YouTube channel and “deliver big journalistic moments that can be used across BBC News”.
