''Right to Reply'' (sometimes called ''R2R'') is a

British television Regular television broadcasts in the United Kingdom started in 1936 as a public service which was free of advertising, which followed the first demonstration of a transmitted moving image in 1926. Currently, the United Kingdom has a collection ...

series shown on

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned enterprise, state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a four ...

from

1982 Events January * January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00). * January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street bridges, 14th Street Bridge in ...

until

2001 The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a Participants in ...

, which allowed viewers to voice their complaints or concerns about TV programmes. It featured reports, usually presented by a viewer, and interviews with the programme-makers concerned.

History

''Right to Reply'' was more serious and less humorous than its

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...

equivalent '' Points of View''. Also, ''R2R'' discussed all channels' programmes, although, originally, only "Channel Four programme makers erecalled to account"; after a few years ''R2R'' started to discuss

ITV ITV or iTV may refer to: ITV *Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of: ** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...

shows as well, and soon also added BBC, and later

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shows. ''Points of View'' only commented on BBC programmes, and continues to today. Some notable episodes and reports included: *"Manhattan Transfer" (first broadcast 8 February 1985

an entire episode about

John Wilcock John Wilcock (4 August 1927 – 13 September 2018) was a British journalist known for his work in the underground press, as well as his travel guide books. The first news editor of the New York ''Village Voice'', Wilcock shook up staid publish ...

, who hosted a

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

cable TV public access show about TV. *''Right to Replys covering of a controversial

sex scene Sex in film, the presentation of aspects of sexuality in film, specially human sexuality, has been controversial since the development of the medium. Films which display or suggest sexual behavior have been criticized by religious groups or hav ...

in ''

The Singing Detective ''The Singing Detective'' is a BBC television serial drama, written by Dennis Potter, starring Michael Gambon and directed by Jon Amiel. Its six episodes are "Skin", "Heat", "Lovely Days", "Clues", "Pitter Patter" and "Who Done It". The ser ...

'' in 1986, which caused some viewers to complain about ''Right to Reply'', which was possibly

Simon Cowell Simon Phillip Cowell (; born 7 October 1959) is an English television personality, entrepreneur and record executive. He is the creator of ''The X Factor'' and ''Got Talent'' franchises which have been sold around the world. He has judged on t ...

's debut TV appearance. A notable feature of ''Right to Reply'' was the "video box", which gave viewers a third means of communicating with the programme in the 1980s, alongside

letter Letter, letters, or literature may refer to: Characters typeface * Letter (alphabet), a character representing one or more of the sounds used in speech; any of the symbols of an alphabet. * Letterform, the graphic form of a letter of the alphabe ...

telephone A telephone is a telecommunications device that permits two or more users to conduct a conversation when they are too far apart to be easily heard directly. A telephone converts sound, typically and most efficiently the human voice, into e ...

. In the late 1990s (until 2001) the "Right to Reply 500", a group of 500 TV viewers, answered weekly online surveys about current television issues.

Cancellation

Channel 4's 2001 decision to end ''Right to Reply'', after a run of more than 18 years, was criticised by its fans, since nothing similar remains in its place. Some have said that the cancellation was representative of Channel 4's move into the mainstream and unwillingness to take risks like it did in the 1980s - said one viewer, "the Channel 4 that I view today has evolved into just another TV channel".

Reinstatement

On 24 May 2007,

Ofcom The Office of Communications, commonly known as Ofcom, is the government-approved regulatory and competition authority for the broadcasting, telecommunications and postal industries of the United Kingdom. Ofcom has wide-ranging powers acros ...

ordered the reinstatement of a Channel Four ''Right to Reply'' programme in its adjudication of the 2007 ''

Celebrity Big Brother ''Big Brother VIP'', is an adaptation of the '' Big Brother'' reality television series. It is the celebrity version of its parent franchise ''Big Brother'', the celebrity version airs in several countries, however, the housemates or houseguest ...

'' race row.Ofcom Content Sanctions Committee
/ref> ''The TV Show'' was shown once a month on Channel 4, but by the end of the second series, the show was cancelled due to poor ratings and reviews.

References

External links

BFI.org.uk: Overview of content in many ''Right to Reply'' episodes, 1982-2001Viewer Dom Robinson reviews his experience on ''R2R'', 2001
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Right To Reply Channel 4 original programming British television talk shows 1990s British television series 1982 British television series debuts 2001 British television series endings Television series about the media Criticism of journalism