Media Masters

Ed Needham, Editor of Coach, and Sirena Bergman, Head of Content and Community at The News Hub, join Paul Blanchard to discuss the latest media headlines. This episode: are so-called 'freemium' magazines the future? Do contributor networks, like The Huffington Post, pose a threat to traditional journalism? And will adblockers kill off banner advertising on the web - and could this seriously harm revenues?

Political strategist Lynton Crosby is credited with winning the 2015 UK General Election for the Conservatives. He has built up an international reputation as an election winner, having helped Boris Johnson win the Mayoralty of London twice, and the Liberal Party of his native Australia win the national election four times. In this exclusive interview, Crosby reveals the goings-on behind the scenes during the recent election, explains why he feels Boris has the skills to lead, and gives a detailed assessment on why he thinks the Labour Party has now lost its way.

Rachel Oldroyd, Managing Editor at The Bureau of Investigative Journalism, and Aidan Radnedge, Chief Reporter at Metro, join Paul Blanchard to discuss the latest media headlines. This week: Should newspapers have reprinted the PigGate allegations when they were based on only one source? Would privatising Channel 4 jeopardise the quality of its output? And will more news websites turn off comments because they are expensive and difficult to moderate?

Simon McCoy has been a News Presenter at the BBC for more than 12 years. A rolling news veteran, he previously spent 16 years at Sky News - as Royal Correspondent, then presenter of Sunrise, and memorably co-anchoring its coverage of the Iraq conflict live from the war zone. Simon takes us behind the scenes on how a live TV news show gets to air, and discusses how the industry has changed.

Florentin Collomp, UK Correspondent at Le Figaro, and Jess Best, Deputy News Editor at MirrorOnline, join Paul Blanchard to discuss the latest media headlines. This episode: Does the media spend a disproportionate amount of time reporting on the Royal Family? Would the launch of BBC TV and radio services in Russia and North Korea be a good use of public money? And will campaign groups like Greenpeace play a bigger role in funding investigative journalism in the future?

Susie Boniface's anonymous blog "Fleet Street Fox" caused a stir with its warts-and-all glimpse into the inner life of a tabloid journalist. A successful columnist at The Daily Mirror, she discusses why she created her alter ego, explains the decision to 'out' herself in her successful book, and reveals a few shocking tales from the newsroom.

Paul Hamilos, World Features Editor at BuzzFeed, and David Singleton, Editor at Total Politics, join Paul Blanchard to discuss the latest media headlines. This episode: Is the SNP trying to increase its influence over the BBC? Has reporting on immigration, and its use of words like "swarm" and "migrants", contributed to public acrimony against refugees? And have papers given too much space to criticism of Jeremy Corbyn - and has this actually grown his support?

Once named "the most influential man in British television," Sir Peter Bazalgette has created some of TV's greatest global hits, including Ready Steady Cook, Changing Rooms, and Ground Force. As Chairman of Endemol UK, he brought us the iconic Big Brother, and persuaded Noel Edmonds to front their new show Deal or No Deal. In this in-depth interview, he gives an end-to-end insider's view of the TV production process, reveals the behind-the-scenes rules to creating globally successful television, and discusses his new role as Chair of Arts Council England.

Chief Executive of the Advertising Standards Authority, Guy Parker is responsible for regulating advertising in the UK. In this in-depth one-to-one interview, he explains the challenges the ASA faces regulating the web and YouTube; describes the behind-the-scenes process that goes into deciding whether an advert is offensive or not; and explains the rationale of its more contentious rulings, including on the Atheist Bus Campaign and the 'Are You Beach Body Ready?' posters.