The boss of BBC News Podcasts is moving to Newsnight to lead its evolution into an interview and discussion show.
Jonathan Aspinwall, who has worked at the BBC since 1997, will become executive editor of Newsnight.
The BBC announced in November that Newsnight would reformat into an “interview, debate and discussion show which draws on the best of the BBC’s talent and news-making interviews to make sense of the day’s news”.
This will mean the programme will no longer have its own dedicated reporters to produce investigative films. The programme is also being cut from 45 to 30 minutes.
The total number of jobs at Newsnight was planned to be cut from 57 to 23 as a result.
Former editor Stewart Maclean, who was appointed in April 2022, handed in his resignation before the changes were made public but reportedly after talks of dramatic cuts to the programme had begun.
Aspinwall currently runs BBC News Podcasts, including Newscast (reportedly the 14th biggest podcast in the UK in the last quarter of 2023), Americast, Ukrainecast, The Global Story and The Shamima Begum Story series.
Aspinwall said the Newsnight team will “be building on Newsnight’s formidable reputation for the biggest interviews and sharp analysis” ahead of the UK and US elections.
John McAndrew, director of news programmes at the BBC, said: “Jonathan’s sharp news sense, creativity and experience of developing new formats make him the perfect person to oversee Newsnight as it enters a new phase. He will ensure that it remains the destination for intelligent debate, analysis and forensic interviews.”
McAndrew also thanked deputy editors Rosie Seed and Becky Emmett who have led Newsnight on an interim basis since Maclean’s departure. He said they have been “maintaining the programme’s high editorial standards and leading the way on some of the biggest stories of the year”.
Aspinwall’s previous BBC roles include editing Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg as well as deputy editor of BBC Breakfast, senior news editor at World TV and editor of 5 Live’s late night output.
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