News Broadcasting
Time Warner to give YMCAs media and technology grants
CHICAGO: Our media czars could sure learn a thing or two from Time Warner in terms of giving back to society. The Time Warner Foundation has selected America’s YMCAs as recipients of a $600,000 grant.
The aim is to advance 21st Century media and technology skills, increasing the ability of teenagers to communicate, collaborate and address community concerns.
An official release says that the $600,000 grant, accorded over three years to US YMCAs will initially educate and train over 450 YMCA teen-related staff, youth volunteers and YMCA community partners in after school programmes in the use of media and technology to tackle pressing community concerns. A similar Time Warner grant is being given to the New York City organisation Girls Inc.
The Time Warner grants will enable YMCA teens to create one-stop web and video inventories of the resources available in their communities. The process is called Asset Mapping. Teens will then use their newly developed media and communication skills to advocate for positive changes in their communities such as increasing after-school programs, making libraries and other public institutions more widely available to teens, and creating open spaces for teen activities.
Over the next three years, the YMCA of the USA will hold nine retreats for youth-serving programme staff and young volunteers from local YMCAs. Those teams will then return home and begin, or refine, civic-oriented volunteer projects involving many more teens at local Ys. Fifteen of those local projects will be selected for additional funding from the grant.
The grant funds will allow the YMCA to educate and train at least 450 Y teen-related staff, youth volunteers and community partners in 21st Century skills like media, technology, video production, collaboration and critical thinking. The YMCA will also train 45 teens and 15 staff per year in advanced computer communications and effective writing; facilitate the creation of 15 youth-developed, advanced web products on critical local issues; and facilitate each year the training of an additional 45 teenagers using the initial trainees as instructors.
YMCA of the USA national executive director Kenneth L. Gladish Ph.D added, “This partnership will enable the YMCAs to put more dynamic new tools and capabilities into the hands of America’s young people. YMCAs engage more than nine million young members who in turn can address many of the particular challenges and concerns of their own communities.
“This process will serve our communities and our nation while building character and creating a generation of new leaders as well. We are very grateful to the Time Warner Foundation for their important contributions.”
Time Warner Foundation executive director Michele Sacconaghi said, “The YMCA has a terrific history of providing learning opportunities for young people in the out-of-school hours. The programmes we are sponsoring will extend this rich tradition, giving teens the chance to learn the skills they need to succeed in a complex world.”
News Broadcasting
BBC to cut up to 2,000 jobs in biggest overhaul in 15 years
Cost pressures and leadership change drive major workforce reduction plan
LONDON: BBC has unveiled plans to cut up to 2,000 jobs, roughly 10 per cent of its global workforce, in what marks its biggest downsizing in 15 years.
The announcement was made during an all-staff meeting led by interim director-general Rhodri Talfan Davies, as the broadcaster moves to tackle mounting financial pressures and reshape its operations.
Between 1,800 and 2,000 roles are expected to be eliminated from a workforce of around 21,500. The cuts form part of a broader plan to save £500 million over the next two years, aimed at offsetting rising costs, stagnating licence fee income and weaker commercial revenues.
In a communication to staff, BBC interim director-general Rhodri Talfan Davies said, “I know this creates real uncertainty, but we wanted to be open about the challenge,” acknowledging the impact the move would have across the organisation.
The restructuring comes at a time of leadership transition. Former director-general Tim Davie stepped down earlier this month, with Matt Brittin, a former Google executive, set to take over the role on May 18, 2026.
While some cost-cutting measures are being implemented immediately, the majority of the structural changes are expected to roll out over the next few years, with full savings targeted by the 2027–2028 financial year.
The broadcaster had earlier signalled its intent to reduce its cost base by around 10 per cent over a three-year period, warning of “difficult choices” as it adapts to shifting economic realities and audience expectations.
With operating costs hovering around £6 billion annually, the BBC’s latest move underscores the scale of the financial challenge it faces, as it balances public service commitments with the need for long-term sustainability in an increasingly competitive media landscape.
