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Pornography on Radio 4

2013-06-28T15:18:20+00:00

Editor's note: Feedback is available to listen to online or to download and keep.

The Moral Maze is the most difficult programme I have presented.

Mind you, I was only in charge for three editions as its regular presenter, Michael Buerk, is a remarkable fit and healthy man who loves the programme so much he arranges the rest of his life around its transmissions.

Is any subject - like pornography - too taboo for the Moral Maze?

Did I ever hope Michael would fall under a bus or at least be struck a glancing blow? Perish the thought.

Nontheless, if asked I would certainly do it again for the sheer rush of adrenaline caused by the excitement and danger involved.

For a start the show is live, so no retakes, no editing.

Then there is the job of corralling 4 panellists and up to four witnesses who are all strong minded and determined to have their say. It is particularly difficult to get the panellists to shut up since, when interrogating the witnesses, they turn their backs on the presenter, and so are unable to see his "cut throat" signals.

When David Starkey, "the rudest man in Britain", was on the panel a previous producer was reduced to walking into the live studio and putting his hands around the good Doctor's neck, in order to shut him up. He failed of course.

Michael Buerk and guests in the Moral Maze studio in January 1994.

Finally, having steered the witnesses in and out of the studio, the presenter has to pick up the key points of the interrogations and chair a final discussion before getting out on time.

I suppose I had it easy, however, since I did not have to chair an edition devoted to the issue of pornography, which inevitably involved difficult decisions having to be made about taste and decency.

On Feedback this week listeners had very mixed reaction to last week's edition of the Moral Maze which dealt with internet porn, some even questioning whether it was an appropriate issue for the programme to deal with.

Here is our feature, which includes an interview with the producer, Phil Pegum.

Is any subject too taboo for the Moral Maze?

The BBC's annual report will soon be published. If you would like to explore the facts behind the figures do let us know. We're hoping to recruit a panel of listener reporters to go where others fear to tread and tell their fellow licence fee payers just what goes on behind the scenes.

Happy Listening.

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Inside The Ethics Committee: Ventilation in Children

2012-08-08T16:17:09+00:00

Editor's note: Inside The Ethics Committee returns this week with the subject of Chidren in Intensive Care. You can listen again to the programme or download the series for free. PM

What happens when children born with life-limiting, degenerative illnesses become so ill they need lifesaving treatment but that treatment has its own serious risks? Should they be kept alive at all costs?

Ben and Ayisha both have conditions which mean their muscles are getting weaker and weaker over time and they both end up in hospital because the muscles that control their lungs get too weak so they can't breathe on their own.

Ben is two and a half and Ayisha is 6 months old. They both end up in intensive care with ventilation to allow them to breathe. Ben needs to be sedated because of the discomfort of having a tube down his windpipe to help him breathe. Ayisha has a mask covering her face which pushes air in and sucks it out. She also needs intensive, painful physiotherapy to clear the secretions that build up in her lungs.

Both could have a surgical procedure called a tracheostomy where a tube is inserted directly into the neck and connected to a ventilator. This would mean Ben could come off sedation and Ayisha could remove the mask. With a tracheostomy both could go home. Ayisha's prognosis is that she is unlikely to live until her 2nd birthday and her muscles will get weaker. Already she can't suck or swallow and she could get to the point where she can't open her eyes. Ben's condition is rarer and the team don't know how severe it is and how quickly his condition will deteriorate.

Tracheostomy isn't pain free - they would both need regular suction to clear their lungs.

Should they be given a tracheostomy?
Does it risk them being kept alive but being too weak to express any emotion or able to see or interact with the world around them?
If this treatment is given, how do parents and doctors decide when and if it should be withdrawn as their health declines?

Joan Bakewell is joined on the panel by: Dr Paul Baines is Consultant in Paediatric Intensive Care Medicine at Alder Hey hospital, Deborah Bowman, Professor of Ethics and Law at St George's Hospital, London, John Wyatt Emeritus Professor of Ethics & Perinatology at University College London and Sally Flatteau Taylor, Founder of the Maypole Project that supports children with life-threatening illnesses and their families.

Pam Rutherford is producer of Inside The Ethics Comittee

Moral Maze on Twitter and mob rule

2009-11-04T09:33:41+00:00

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00nkcfk

This evening starting at 2000, the disputatious crew of the good ship Moral Maze will be debating 'Twitter and mob rule'. Guests are regulars Melanie Philips and Clifford Longley plus Kenan Malik and James Panton. The programme's billing says:

This week the Moral Maze asks "when does a popular and spontaneous protest become mob rule?" Fans of Twitter, the micro blogging site, have chalked up a couple of notable victories of late. Followers helped to expose a legal injunction against the Guardian and Twitter led protests generated tens of thousands of complaints against Jan Moir when she wrote a column using the death of Stephen Gately to criticise gay marriage. Is this net based protest a valuable tool to demonstrate popular opinion or are we sacrificing traditional political engagement for the instant gratification direct action?

Since I expect the Twittersphere will be humming loudly during the programme (it's already started), let's keep track of the conversation using a hashtag.

If you're listening this evening and you feel like Tweeting about the programme or its theme, use the hash tag #moralmaze. That way everyone who's listening will be able to see each other's contributions. Use a search tool like Ice Rocket or Twitter's own. Or use a real-time display gadget like Twitterfall. There's a comprehensive list of Twitter clients and services on Wikipedia. Just follow the hashtag #moralmaze.

I'll be there, listening and tweeting on the @Radio4blog account as will other Radio 4 people. Guests Kenan Malik (a regular presenter of Analysis) and James Panton (an Oxford academic) are on Twitter and they've both mentioned their appearances on tonight's programme already.

Steve Bowbrick is editor of the Radio 4 blog

The Moral Maze is live from Broadcasting House tonight at 2000.
There's likely to be plenty of discussion of the programme on the BBC Religion and Ethics messageboard.
The picture, PDX Pillow Fight #8, is by Sam Grover and is used under licence.