Editing World in Action (section)

{{short description|British investigative current affairs programme}}
{{For|the Canadian World War II propaganda film series|The World in Action}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2017}}
{{Infobox television
| image       = World in Action logo 1970.jpg
| caption     = 1970s version of the programme's opening title
| runtime     = 30 minutes
| creator     = [[Tim Hewat]]
| channel     = [[ITV (TV network)|ITV]]
| first_aired = {{Start date|1963|01|07|df=y}}
| last_aired  = {{End date|1998|12|07|df=y}}
| num_series  = 35
| language    = English
| country     = United Kingdom
| producer    = [[ITV Granada|Granada Television]]
}}

'''''World in Action''''' was a British investigative [[current affairs (news format)|current affairs]] programme made by [[ITV Granada|Granada Television]] for [[ITV (TV network)|ITV]] from 7 January 1963 until 7 December 1998. Its campaigning [[investigative journalism|journalism]] frequently had a major impact on events of the day. Its production teams often took audacious risks, and the programme gained a solid reputation for its often-unorthodox approach. The series was sold around the world and won numerous awards. In its heyday, ''World in Action'' drew audiences of up to 23 million in Britain alone, equivalent to almost half the population.

[[Cabinet minister]]s fell to its probings. Numerous innocent victims of the British [[criminal justice]] system, including the [[Birmingham Six]], were released from jail. Honouring the programme in its 50th anniversary awards the [[Political Studies Association]] said, "''World in Action'' thrived on unveiling corruption and highlighting underhand dealings. ''World in Action'' came to be seen as hard-hitting investigative journalism at its best."<ref>{{Cite web|title=Fiftieth Anniversary Award Winners|url=https://www.psa.ac.uk/about/brochure/PSA%20Brochure_18-25.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081003124747/http://www.psa.ac.uk/about/brochure/PSA%20Brochure_18-25.pdf|archive-date=2008-10-03|website=[[Political Studies Association]]}}</ref> A melodramatic post-trial encounter in 1967 between [[Mick Jagger]] and senior British establishment figures, in which the rock star and his retinue were flown by helicopter onto the lawn of a [[stately home]], was engineered by then ''World in Action'' researcher and future [[Director-General of the BBC|BBC Director-General]] [[John Birt, Baron Birt|John Birt]]. Decades later, Birt himself described it as "one of the iconic moments of the Sixties."<ref>{{Cite web|date=2005-08-26|title=John Birt's MacTaggart Lecture 2005|url=http://www.theguardian.com/media/2005/aug/26/broadcasting.uknews|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191113162955/https://www.theguardian.com/media/2005/aug/26/broadcasting.uknews|archive-date=2019-11-13|access-date=2020-10-04|website=[[The Guardian]]|language=en}}</ref> Soon after she became [[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservative Party]] leader, [[Margaret Thatcher]] was said to have told the BBC Director-General, Sir [[Ian Trethowan]], that she considered ''World in Action'' to consist of "just a lot of [[Trotskyist|Trots]]. ''[[Panorama (British TV programme)|Panorama]]'', however, are bastards."<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|date=2008-05-13|title=NEW – Frontline Confidential with Ray Fitzwalter: the rise and fall of ITV|url=https://www.frontlineclub.com/new_-_frontline_confidential_with_ray_fitzwalter_the_rise_and_fall_of_itv/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160527055219/http://www.frontlineclub.com/new_-_frontline_confidential_with_ray_fitzwalter_the_rise_and_fall_of_itv/|archive-date=2016-05-27|access-date=2020-10-04|website=[[Frontline Club]]|language=en}}</ref>

Its removal after 35 years was seen by some as part of a general [[dumbing down]] of British television and of ITV in particular.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Fitzwalter|first=Raymond|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/183917413|title=The Dream That Died: The Rise and Fall of ITV|date=2008|publisher=Troubador|isbn=978-1-906221-87-4|location=Leicester|oclc=183917413}}</ref> One commercial TV regulatory official privately characterised the ''[[Tonight (1999 TV programme)|Tonight]]'' programme, which replaced it, as merely "fluffy".<ref name=":0" /> Others saw ''World in Action's'' eventual disappearance as the inevitable consequence of rising commercial pressures. Announcing a £250,000 fund for an investigative journalism training scheme, [[Channel 4]] said in November 2011 that a decline in the pool of investigative journalism had occurred since "the demise of training grounds such as ''World in Action''".<ref>{{Cite news|last=Conlan|first=Tara|date=2011-11-08|title=Channel 4 to air more, shorter Dispatches episodes|language=en-GB|work=The Guardian|url=https://www.theguardian.com/media/2011/nov/08/channel-4-dispatches|url-status=live|access-date=2020-10-04|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191113162945/https://www.theguardian.com/media/2011/nov/08/channel-4-dispatches|archive-date=2019-11-13|issn=0261-3077}}</ref>