Who Owns the Audience? How digital creators are reshaping the future of TV

TIME & LOCATION

Tuesday 10 November, 3:00 pm

End Time: 4:00 pm

Downstairs Theatre

About

Digital platforms are no longer simply places to watch clips, catch up on music videos or consume content made elsewhere. Sites including YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram have become major destinations for original entertainment, factual content and personality-led programming.

There’s a massive shift in the way content is made, distributed and consumed. Creators are building audiences of millions, making their own programmes and generating their own revenue – often without any involvement from traditional television.

Meanwhile, broadcasters are trying to find new ways to reach younger audiences who may never turn on a television.

In this panel, we ask what creators can do that broadcasters can’t, what broadcasters can offer that creators need, and whether there is a future in which both can benefit.

Chair

Muslim Alim

SPONSOR

Panel

Muslim Alim

BBC COMMISSIONING EDITOR
Muslim has been with the BBC for 24 years and produced award-winning content across Radio, TV and Digital. Starting as a Researcher in TV Entertainment he went on to produce music programmes and features for BBC Radio 1 and was the co-creator of digital youth brand BBC The Social where he commissioned multi-genre content including partnerships with News, a YouTube drama set in Edinburgh and a slew of viral hits across a social media portfolio. He joined the BBC Daytime commissioning team 9 years ago and looks after some of the department's longstanding titles including ‘Homes Under The Hammer’, ‘Money For Nothing’ and ‘Antiques Road Trip’ alongside a range of new titles. Alongside his day-to-day role as Commissioning Editor, Muslim is keen on discovering how evolving audience behaviours and new technologies like AI can transform the landscape of content conception, production and distribution.

Aimee Fuller

Tv presenter
Aimee Fuller is a Double Olympic snowboarder and TV Presenter, BBC3 lead Winter Olympics presenter & host of BBC Sounds ‘Olympic Mile’ pod Creator and host of 9 series of the Monday Mile podcast.

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Kyle Thomas

Presenter
Kyle Thomas is a presenter, animal advocate and the UK’s most followed TikTok creator, with 33 million followers. In 2024, at just 19 years old, Kyle was named one of Forbes’ 30 Under 30, cementing his place as one of the UK’s most influential young creators. He has also built a loyal fanbase on Instagram, with over 1.3 million followers. Outside of content creation, Kyle has modelled for fashion brands including Dsquared. Following his 2024 BBC Three documentary We Built a Zoo, he recently returned with an investigative film, The Dark World of Puppy Farms, for Channel 4’s In Too Deep digital-first strand on YouTube, exposing the dark world of puppy farming. He is also set to front another investigative documentary for BBC Three, which is due to release this Summer. Kyle is currently the UK Roots & Shoots Ambassador for the Jane Goodall Institute and is working at Jimmy’s Farm and Wildlife Park in Suffolk where he has joined the team of animal conservationists. He continues to use his platform to champion conservation, promote responsible pet care, and inspire a new generation of animal lovers. Credits Kyle’s Wildlife Heroes (Youtube) We Built a Zoo, 2025 (BBC Three) In Too Deep: The Dark World of Puppy Farms, 2025 (Channel 4 Youtube) UK Ambassador for Jane Goodall’s ‘Roots & Shoots’ Forbes’ 30 Under 30 UK’s most followed TikToker TikTok

Kelda Crawford McCann

Executive Producer, Strident
Kelda Crawford McCann is Executive Producer at Strident, where she makes bold, thought-provoking documentaries that get people talking. A former BBC news journalist, Kelda went on to work with ITV’s current affairs and documentary team before returning home to Northern Ireland to set up Strident. Her career spans news, factual entertainment, current affairs and documentaries, with a particular interest in stories that shine a light on the issues shaping our world. Recent work includes Caitlin Hanna: Trafficked in Belfast, Men of the Manosphere, Hunting the Catfish Crime Gang and Hunting the Online Sex Predators. Strident is currently producing two docs for BBC Deepwatch - YouTube.