The BBC said its combined international news services attracted a record global weekly audience of over 233 million during 2006-07.
It cited independent surveys saying the global audience figure for the combined services of BBC World Service radio, BBC World television and the BBC’s international online news service is up 23 million from 210 million last year. “Many people used more than one service,” it stated.
BBC World Service’s weekly radio audience estimate is a record 183 million, up 20 million from last year. Officials cited large BBC radio audience increases in Bangladesh and said increased survey coverage added to the estimate in Democratic Republic of Congo and Afghanistan.
“Weekly audiences in radio markets in India, Nigeria, Pakistan and Rwanda all grew by a million or more during the year,” it stated. “BBC World saw substantial growth in audiences in the Africa, Canada, Egypt, India, Pakistan and the USA.”
