1 Archived BBC Public Responses to Complaints
Archived BBC public responses to complaints 2019 This Week, BBC One, 10 January 2019 Summary of complaint We received complaints from people who felt Owen Jones was treated in a disrespectful manner while appearing as a guest on the programme. Our response Following the verbal abuse which he and others had sustained from protesters outside Parliament, Owen Jones, journalist, left wing commentator and activist, used his “Take of the Week” section to give his personal take on the current state of political discourse, the rise of the far right and, as he deemed, the reasons for this. This is a prominent section of the programme in which the author gives their views unchallenged. During his video and the studio discussion which followed, Mr Jones made allegations about the Conservative Party and right wing media which some would consider contentious. As our audience would expect, Andrew scrutinised what Mr Jones said. Michael Portillo, who disagreed with Mr Jones, also gave his opinion. Mr Jones was given ample time to express his views and respond to points made to him. When Mr Jones made allegations about The Spectator magazine and Andrew’s role with the publication. Andrew legitimately pointed out that this was nothing to do with the BBC and it wasn’t right for Mr Jones to use the programme to make personal accusations against him. Today, BBC Radio 4, 26 January 2019 Summary of complaint We received a range of complaints following the interview of Helen McEntee. Some listeners felt the tone and content were not appropriate, suggesting a personal bias from the interviewer.
[Show full text]