BBC flagship program Newsnight cut to 30 minutes as part of $9.5m savings plan

News nightThe BBC’s daily current affairs program will be cut to 30 minutes and relaunched as a forum for interviews and debate.

BBC News has today informed staff of a £7.5m ($9.5m) savings plan with BBC2 News night bears the brunt of the cuts as the UK broadcaster struggles with a funding freeze.

The show, which has built a reputation for original investigative journalism over its 43 years, is no longer hiring reporters. More than half in total From Newsnight 60 jobs are expected to disappear.

sources said News night, which currently runs 40 minutes, has been “stripped.” The BBC argued that the savings would be reinvested in a “BBC News Investigations Unit” which would service all of the corporation’s news production.

Deborah Turnness, chief executive of BBC News, said: “The public have told us how much they appreciate it News night as the BBC’s iconic debate and discussion show and we listened to what they said – we made the decision to keep the show on air five days a week despite the financial challenges we face.

“News night has also been a source of great investigative journalism and film, but we know that people consume the news in different ways and it may no longer make sense to have a tailor-made reporting team for a television show. We will deliver more to the public by investing to ensure the best investigative journalism and reporting is produced and consumed at BBC News.”

BBC News media and culture editor Katie Razzall echoed the views of some colleagues with a message on Twitter (now X). “Everyone who works on the show – and that includes me – will be deeply saddened today by the end of @BBCNewsnight as we know and love it,” she said.

Elsewhere as part of the £7.5 million ($9.5 million) savings plan, the BBC is working on the Our world Strand and nine hours less to produce some documentaries for BBC2. BBC News at number one moves from London to Salford and is extended by one hour.

The BBC said £5 million of the savings would be reinvested in digital journalism and the new investigative unit as the British broadcaster gradually moves away from traditional broadcasting.

“Like many companies, we are in a difficult financial environment and as our audience rapidly shifts from television to online news consumption, we have to make decisions about where we spend our resources,” Turness said.