The tribunal judgment on Miriam O'Reilly, the Countryfile presenter, is fair and welcome, not just for her but for the audience as a whole - which expects to see a wide range of faces presenting programmes.
But in one respect some press comment has been unfair. Channel controllers have once more been accused of 'an obsession with youth'. In reality, they, and other commissioners, are obsessed not with youth but with 'reach' - an altogether more legitimate aim.A public service broadcaster is required, in exchange for access to spectrum and/or the licence fee, to reach all sections of the audience, irrespective of age, gender or region.
The regulator, Ofcom, specifies that "reach and impact" are two of the most important criteria for public service broadcasting.
The confusion with youth comes in because young people are notoriously difficult to reach, a fact which the BBC's commissioners and channel controllers are only too aware of.
Of course, BBC3 helps, but that doesn't let the main channel, BBC1, off the hook. Since it claims the lion's share of the television budget at the BBC, it mustn't neglect any section of the audience.
In reality, of course, everyone accepts that, while shows like EastEnders or Doctor Who bring in audiences under 50 (yes, that's a definition of young!), the subject matter of other shows means they naturally 'skew' older.
Songs of Praise is a good example, and possibly Countryfile, too. These programmes are never going to improve BBC1's reach to the young - that's not their purpose in the schedule - so it's highly unlikely that was the channel controller's aim, as opposed to a straightforward 'ringing of the changes' when the show moved to primetime.
Songs of Praise, Springwatch and other long-running titles with older audience profiles also regularly make changes - including changing presenters.
So let's not repeat the 'obsession with youth' criticism unfairly but remember that, when it comes to choosing presenters, charisma and a convincing knowledge or experience of the show's subject matter are the audience's highest priorities. They can see both a mile off and they aren't fooled by gimmicks.
Commissioners sometimes sum up these criteria as 'authenticity'. Good luck to Countryfile and Miriam O'Reilly - genuine authentics both.
