In Conversation with Ian King

At our latest Broadcast Revolution event, we had the pleasure of speaking to former Sky News business presenter, Ian King. Ian anchored “Ian King Live” (latterly “Business Live”) for more than a decade. Ian offered his expert perspective on a range of issues..

Are Business programmes in trouble?

Television news coverage for business stories is certainly changing. Sky News has now dropped “Business Live” and will run financial coverage across its wider news output on merit. GB News did the same a couple of years ago. That will mean a greater focus on covering finance stories that directly affect the consumer. Ian says that’s going to make it “harder to cut through” for business stories on Sky News.

Ian said dedicated business coverage has also been reduced on the BBC and added that business podcasts will be part of the answer to securing coverage.

Ian believes that the fundamentals of business journalism remain the same, saying “business news is no different to any other news – it’s not just jargon and numbers”. Now more than ever, make your business story approachable for a wider audience.

What makes a story stand out?

When asked exactly what makes a story stand out, Ian noted, “if a producer or presenter is actually invested in a brand or story themselves, that gets you out of the email inbox immediately.”

Authenticity is the name of the game for Ian. If he already knew the guest or subject that made for a better interview, as they were already comfortable with him and weren’t expecting him to unfairly go after them in any way. However, Ian said “he never shied away from asking tough questions”.

Business executives don’t have to do TV interviews, so Ian encouraged other journalists to put them at ease.

What stories do or do not interest Ian?

As someone who has been involved in journalism for decades, Ian knows what stories do and do not work well for a conversation.

Ian said he liked to focus a lot on technology EG. self-driving cars, EG. new energy – which he was “genuinely fascinated by”. The post-Brexit economy debate – how is the UK going to make a living and pay its way in the world, were also topics Ian had a special interest in.

Ian noted that he liked to discuss the world economy, including economic super powers like USA and China, and wanted to talk more on India.

A memorable moment for him was when he was one of the first journalists to speak about TikTok – before the mainstream media had picked it up. This was because he saw his daughter using the app.

Conversations Ian prefers to avoid are where the focus is too narrow. EG. banking apps going down (although he did admit they are important). If you’re going to be on-air talking about something like that, have something extra to say that can really add to the conversation.

The Upcoming Budget

When asked for his own Budget Day predictions, Ian said he’ll be looking at what the Chancellor can do without breaking her own fiscal rules. That will define her choices.

Ian predicted a change to VAT. The UK’s regime is more narrowly focused than those of many European nations, and reform could be on the table.

Last comments

Ian’s final advice to business spokespeople about to appear in a TV studio is to be particularly nice to the makeup artists – they gossip and they can make you look fabulous!

Ian has also just announced his involvement in a new business focused podcast ‘Behind the Narrative’ so we will continue to hear his great business insights there.