Description
Match Of The Day presenter Gary Lineker has been asked to resign as host of the BBC show after being embroiled in a dispute over impartiality. However, a former BBC executive said there was "a lot of confusion" about whether the company's guidelines should apply to Lineker, who works as a freelance broadcaster. Here, the PA news agency examines the BBC's impartiality rules:
– What do the BBC guidelines say?
The BBC says it is "committed" to achieving the required fairness in all its productions, describing it as "fundamental to our reputation, values and public trust".
The company's guidelines state that the impartiality must be "adequate and appropriate to the outcome, taking into account the subject matter and nature of the content, the likely expectations of the audience, and any signage that may influence those expectations."
He adds that BBC production must always "examine arguments, challenge consensus and hold power to account" with consistency and impartiality.
Richard Sambrook, former director of information at the BBC and director of BBC Global News and the BBC World Service, has declared to the PA press agency that "impartiality is crucial" for the BBC and their personnel dans "all ce qu 'do".
– What is the BBC's policy on social media?
The BBC guidelines note that social media "is now part of everyday life" and that all its staff are free to "participate in social media activities if they wish."
However, they state that, as with official platforms, any activity "whether in a 'professional' or 'personal' capacity" must be informed by editorial guidelines.
A "clear distinction" must be made between BBC spaces that are run by the BBC for BBC purposes and personal spaces that are run by BBC staff or talent for their personal purposes, the guidelines say.
"What did Lineker do?"
Lineker was reprimanded by the BBC after responding on Twitter to a Home Office video in which Home Secretary Suella Braverman revealed the government's plans to prevent migrants from crossing the English Channel in small boats.
The former England striker wrote: "There is no mass influx. We are accepting far fewer refugees than other major European countries."
"It is simply an immeasurably cruel policy directed against the most vulnerable people in language not unlike that used by Germany in the 1930s."
The BBC said it had decided that Lineker would step down from his hosting duties on MOTD until they had "a clear and agreed position on his use of social media".
– Do the BBC guidelines apply to Lineker?
Lineker is a freelance BBC broadcaster, not a permanent staff member, and is not responsible for news or political content, so he doesn't need to adhere to the same impartiality rules.
His Twitter comments were made on his personal account, which does not include an official BBC or MOTD link in his bio.
However, the BBC guidelines also state that personalities "clearly identified with the BBC" must conduct themselves appropriately and "in a manner consistent with the BBC's values and editorial policies".
Sambrook told PA: 'For a sportscaster in his personal life to express opinions that aren't even-handed, it's not as bad as being a journalist.
PA files
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