The BBC’s CEO Tony Hall has apologized after the N-word was used in a TV news broadcast, following massive complaints and the dismissal of one of the corporation’s radio DJs.
“Every organization needs to be able to recognize when it has made a mistake. We made one here, ”Hall said in an email to all BBC staff.
The BBC had previously refused to apologize for using the word last month in a report originally broadcast on the regional services Points West, before being repeated on the main channel BBC News.
The report, by BBC social affairs correspondent Fiona Lamdin, repeated the language she allegedly wrote during an attack on a young black man in Bristol.
The BBC defends its decision, saying the recording of the racial slur was made with the approval of the victim and his family, who want to show the seriousness of the attack. It said the decision to broadcast the word followed conversations with “senior editors” and was preceded by a warning to viewers.
Using the word has garnered more than 18,000 complaints from the BBC.
On Saturday, Radio 1Xtra presenter Sideman quit his job, saying he could not work with the BBC causing “the N-word to be said on national television by a white person”.
Sideman, the professional name of cabaret artist and presenter David Whitely, said in an Instagram post that the BBC’s following defense of the broadcast “felt like a slap in the face to our community”.
David Lammy MP said on LBC radio on Sunday, saying the N-word “was probably the most offensive word in English” and adding that he was “glad the CEO has issued an apology, but I’m staggering that it took days “.
In his email, Hall said he had convened a meeting of colleagues to discuss “the problems raised by the reporting and the power of the feeling around it”. He wrote: ‘It should be clear that the BBC’s intention was to mark an alleged racist attack. This is important journalism that the BBC needs to report on and we will continue to do so.
“Nevertheless, despite these good intentions, I recognize that we are deceived by many people. The BBC now accepts that we should have taken a different approach at the time of the broadcast and we are very sorry for that. We will now strengthen our leadership on offensive language over our output.
“Every organization needs to be able to recognize when it has made a mistake. We made one here. It is important for us to listen – and also to learn. And that’s what we’ll continue to do. ”
In response to the U-turn, comedian London Hughes tweeted about the BBC’s reluctance to act.
London Hughes
(@TheLondonHughes)Puppy! It only took 19,000 complaints, serious Twitter backlog and a member of the BBC staff leaving his job !!! …. But we finally got what we should have in the first place …. An apology..https: //t.co/KeRuQxeEsS
Meanwhile, lawyer and women’s rights activist Dr Shola Mos-Shogbamimu tweeted that it took the BBC a long time to feel ‘very sorry’.
Dr. Shola Mos-Shogbamimu
(@ SholaMos1)Lasted BBC long enough to feel ‘very sorry’ about using N-word. So out of touch!
Dear Lord Tony Hall:
✅ What measures / solutions do you have in place here?
✅ How much attention, if any, do you give to your Black BBC staff @sidemanallday left in protest? https: //t.co/T2ODGdDuTO
Danish comedian Sofie Hagen also commented on the decision, noting that she was told by the BBC that she could not say “Oh my God” or “queer”.
Sofie Hagen
(@SofieHagen)It’s the fact that the BBC did not apologize despite 18,000 complaints, FAN that it was DEFINITELY offensive to black people. But they would not have anyone say ‘oh my god’ or ‘queer’ because that is WHITE some MISCELLANEOUS people. The point is racism.
It is not the first time the BBC has had to backtrack on a controversial decision. In October, Hall backed down on the decision to sanction BBC Breakfast president Naga Munchetty for violating independence guidelines, after responding to Donald Trump’s remarks that four US congressmen of color “should go home”.
Munchetty said: “Every time I was told, as a woman of color, to go back to where I came from, that was embedded in racism.”
In a letter to BBC staff, Hall Munchetty did not apologize, but said he saw the arguments, materials and complaint involved in the case: ‘It was only in a limited way found that there was a breach of our guidelines. These are often well-balanced and difficult judgments, ”he said.
‘But in this case, I do not think Naga’s words were sufficient to justify any part of the complaint surrounding the remarks she made. There has never been a sanction against Naga and I hope this step makes that absolutely clear. She is an exceptional journalist and presenter and I am proud that she works for the BBC.
“I have asked the editorial and management teams to discuss how we will manage live on-air exchanges on these topics in the future. Our impartiality is fundamental to our journalism and is what our audience expects of us. ”
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