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House of Commons Culture, Media and Sport Committee Channel 4 Annual Report 2011 Oral and written evidence 16 October 2012 Lord Burns GCB, Chairman, David Abraham, Chief Executive, and Anne Bulford, Chief Operating Officer, Channel 4 Ordered by The House of Commons to be printed 16 October 2012 HC 610-i Published on 22 April 2013 by authority of the House of Commons London: The Stationery Office Limited £8.50 The Culture, Media and Sport Committee The Culture, Media and Sport Committee is appointed by the House of Commons to examine the expenditure, administration and policy of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and its associated public bodies. Current membership Mr John Whittingdale MP (Conservative, Maldon) (Chair) Mr Ben Bradshaw MP (Labour, Exeter) Angie Bray MP (Conservative, Ealing Central and Acton) Conor Burns MP (Conservative, Bournemouth West) Tracey Crouch MP (Conservative, Chatham and Aylesford) Philip Davies MP (Conservative, Shipley) Paul Farrelly MP (Labour, Newcastle-under-Lyme) Mr John Leech MP (Liberal Democrat, Manchester, Withington) Steve Rotheram MP (Labour, Liverpool, Walton) Jim Sheridan MP (Labour, Paisley and Renfrewshire North) Mr Gerry Sutcliffe MP (Labour, Bradford South) The following members were also members of the committee during the parliament. David Cairns MP (Labour, Inverclyde) Dr Thérèse Coffey MP (Conservative, Suffolk Coastal) Damian Collins MP (Conservative, Folkestone and Hythe) Alan Keen MP (Labour Co-operative, Feltham and Heston) Louise Mensch MP (Conservative, Corby) Mr Adrian Sanders MP (Liberal Democrat, Torbay) Mr Tom Watson MP (Labour, West Bromwich East) Powers The committee is one of the departmental select committees, the powers of which are set out in House of Commons Standing Orders, principally in SO No 152. These are available on the internet via www.parliament.uk. Publication The Reports and evidence of the Committee are published by The Stationery Office by Order of the House. All publications of the Committee (including press notices) are on the internet at www.parliament.uk/cmscom. Committee staff The current staff of the Committee are Elizabeth Flood (Clerk), Grahame Danby (Second Clerk), Kevin Candy (Inquiry Manager), Victoria Butt (Senior Committee Assistant), Keely Bishop (Committee Assistant) and Jessica Bridges-Palmer (Media Officer). Contacts All correspondence should be addressed to the Clerk of the Culture, Media and Sport Committee, House of Commons, 7 Millbank, London SW1P 3JA. The telephone number for general enquiries is 020 7219 6188; the Committee’s email address is [email protected] List of witnesses Tuesday 16 October 2012 Page Lord Burns GCB, Chairman, David Abraham, Chief Executive, and Anne Bulford, Chief Operating Officer, Channel 4 Ev 1 List of written evidence 1 Channel 4 Ev 19 2 Howe & Co Ev 26: 28 3 Children’s Media Foundation Ev 31: 32 4 Christine Cawley Ev 33 cobber Pack: U PL: COE1 [SO] Processed: [19-04-2013 09:35] Job: 024197 Unit: PG01 Source: /MILES/PKU/INPUT/024197/024197_o001_th_121016 Channel 4 Annual Report corrected.xml Culture, Media and Sport Committee: Evidence Ev 1 Oral evidence Taken before the Culture, Media and Sport Committee on Tuesday 16 October 2012 Members present: Mr John Whittingdale (Chair) Mr Ben Bradshaw Steve Rotheram Damian Collins Mr Adrian Sanders Philip Davies Jim Sheridan Paul Farrelly Mr Gerry Sutcliffe ________________ Examination of Witnesses Witnesses: Lord Burns GCB, Chairman, David Abraham, Chief Executive, and Anne Bulford, Chief Operating Officer, Channel 4, gave evidence. Q1 Chair: Good morning. This is the Committee’s We did submit the advertising to the Committee of annual session at which we take evidence on the Advertising Practice before we published and they did Channel 4 annual report. I would like to welcome this approve it. Subsequent to complaints, it was morning the Chairman of Channel 4 Lord Burns, the resubmitted and they re-approved it. It was only in the Chief Executive David Abraham, and the Chief more recent and detailed challenge that, out of four Operating Officer Anne Bulford. There is one quick executions in the campaign, complaints on two have small question that I hope we can clear up very been upheld. We would absolutely distinguish rapidly. Channel 4 has never at any time employed between the ill-advised writings of a relatively junior Jimmy Savile? member of staff and the overall approach of both the David Abraham: No. programme and the campaign. If I may add to that, it Chair: Good. In which case, I think what we will do is significant that the photography for the campaign is start off with one or two of the more controversial was conducted by a respected photographer whose issues of recent weeks and then move into the detail approach was entirely to observe the community of the report. I would like to welcome on board Ben rather than to construct situations. It is the case that Bradshaw, the latest recruit to the Select Committee, three out of the four posters were photographed in and invite him to begin. advance of that email being sent. So although we agree that the email is unacceptable, it did not inform Q2 Mr Bradshaw: It has become apparent in the overall approach that we feel was in keeping with correspondence to this Committee, but also through the approach of the programme. the media, that Channel 4’s behaviour over the Big Fat Gypsy Weddings programme has caused immense Q3 Mr Bradshaw: Is it not the case that the distress and upset in the Gypsy and Traveller photographer herself has expressed unhappiness with community, who quite clearly feel that so far Channel the way you have handled it? You refer to this 4 has not expressed a strong enough and categorical employee as a relatively junior employee, but did you enough apology. Would you like to take the not issue a press release when he was appointed, and opportunity to do that now? what, if any, action has been taken against him? David Abraham: Certainly. I think you are referring David Abraham: He has been formally reprimanded. to an email that a member of staff wrote in connection He has been put on to a training programme. He to the preparation of some photography and it happened to be a member of staff who had joined very absolutely and categorically did not reflect the recently. He reviewed the original set of photographs, approach of Channel 4. The individual has apologised. three out of four, as I said, that were used in the final We have formally apologised as well in terms of the campaign. He took a personal view to express to the reaction of members of the community to the photographer to take a more sensational approach, campaign, but it did not, as I say, reflect our approach which was not what the original brief to the to the programme. The research that we have done photographer was. She quite rightly challenged the in the programme absolutely reflects the fact that in individual. We have an email trail that demonstrates pursuing our remit and shining a light on marginal that challenge. We would say that the final outcome communities we have succeeded in informing the was in keeping with our overall approach, and that is public about this community and informing in new why we believe that the campaign was approved in its ways. In actual fact, the research suggests that three first outing with the ASA. times more people have a positive understanding of the community than they did before they saw the Q4 Damian Collins: I would like to continue with programme. The community itself, as we know, is some questions on that. Firstly, it is true to say that represented by many different groups and those Channel 4 has stated that they used a reputable people who participated in the programme and in the photographic journalist who has experience working advertising campaign were very comfortable with it. with Gypsy and Traveller communities. That is clear. cobber Pack: U PL: COE1 [E] Processed: [19-04-2013 09:35] Job: 024197 Unit: PG01 Source: /MILES/PKU/INPUT/024197/024197_o001_th_121016 Channel 4 Annual Report corrected.xml Ev 2 Culture, Media and Sport Committee: Evidence 16 October 2012 Lord Burns GCB, David Abraham and Anne Bulford It is also clear from her statement she did not know and took those photographs and put them next to a how the work was going to be used, she did not know headline that said “Bigger. Fatter. Gypsier.”, a what the headline was, she did not know about the standalone of two young girls, one of whom was 15 use of the word “Gypsier”, and she was very unhappy when the photograph was taken, wearing low-cut tops. about that. From my experience in advertising, it is I think that is irresponsible. I would hope that you very unusual for photographers not to know what their would think that was irresponsible too. work is going to be used for when they are given David Abraham: Despite the pre-publication the brief. checking that we did do, we accept the final outcome David Abraham: I would entirely agree with you. I and of course we will take on board the learning of think there is a certain amount of evolution in the this in terms of how advertising works out of context. story here, because we believe we were very clear Our audiences have come to expect our advertising to about the approach and the headline. About the be highly branded, to have a certain visual impact. We headline itself, obviously it is a play on a comedy have used photography for some years in our posters. movie that was used in the programme, and then it It is a shorthand for how we differentiate our brand in was adapted for the campaign.

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