BBC director-general Tim Davie has told MPs that “we may see more things coming out” after being asked for assurance there will not be another “scandal of BBC talent abusing their position”.
He told the Culture, Media and Sport Committee: “I think things have changed since we last talked to the committee, we are seeing people call it out, and that is a positive change, but it’s ongoing work.
“I don’t think you can change culture in six months and suddenly say nothing’s going to occur.
“We may see more things coming out, because in some ways I’m asking for it, and being utterly transparent and running towards the problem, that’s what we need to do.”
Mr Davie, who was joined by BBC chair Samir Shah on Tuesday, faced questions on the corporation’s Gaza documentary, its Glastonbury coverage and the recent Gregg Wallace investigation.
Gregg Wallace. Pic: NetStorage
The BBC has faced a series of recent controversies, most prominently the sacking of MasterChef presenter Greg Wallace after claims of inappropriate behaviour.
Presenter John Torode was later axed from the show after an allegation that he used an “extremely offensive racist term”.
On Monday, it was announced that restaurant critic Grace Dent and Irish chef Anna Haugh will be fronting the forthcoming series.
‘No one is irreplaceable – absolutely no one’
On the question of top talent being treated as irreplaceable, Mr Shah said: “No one is irreplaceable. Absolutely no one, seriously, no one”.
Mr Davie added: “We’re all dispensable. That’s an absolute, unequivocal position being given to the whole BBC.”
He also stressed: “We don’t call them talent… Everyone is talent.”
When asked about the decision to air the latest series of MasterChef, with Wallace and Torode still at the helm, Mr Davie said it was “a tough call,” but insisted it was the right decision “on balance” because the “vast majority” of contestants wanted the programme to go out.
Mr Davie added: “I think the consequences for the individuals who presented have been very significant. They no longer work with the BBC.”
The corporation also found itself in hot water in July after it breached its editorial guidelines over a Gaza documentary that was narrated by the child of a Hamas official.
Gaza: How To Survive A Warzone aired on the BBC in February but was pulled from iPlayer after it emerged that the child narrator was the son of Ayman Alyazouri, who has worked as Hamas’s deputy minister of agriculture.
Mr Davie called the broadcast of the documentary, which was made by independent production company Hoyo Films, “a bad mistake,” and said BBC had “executed the recommendations,” adding, “There are people who are facing consequences.”
When asked about Israel refusing to allow journalists into Gaza, Mr Davie said it was “unacceptable,” calling coverage of the Israel-Hamas war, “the toughest coverage challenge we have ever faced”.
BBC accused of ‘disrespect’ over Gaza: Doctors Under Attack
A second documentary was also discussed, Gaza: Doctors Under Attack, which was commissioned by the BBC but subsequently shelved. It was eventually aired by Channel 4 in July.
It was suggested the corporation had been “overcautious” in their decision not to air the film, an accusation Mr Davie denied. He said the BBC have a different set of guidelines to Channel 4.
Labour MP for Ealing Central and Acton, Dr Rupa Huq claimed the documentary was recently “the most asked about thing” at a recent BBC all-staff meeting, and called the corporation’s treatment of the film: “A disrespect for small, independent work done with integrity that you sit on it for months, give some spurious reason and another channel covers it.”
Bob Vylan’s Glastonbury set: ‘We’re not broadcasting this guy’
In June, the livestreaming of the controversial Bob Vylan set at Glastonbury, when the band led chants of “death to the IDF (Israel Defence Forces),” led the BBC to announce it would stop broadcasting “high risk” performances live.
When questioned about Vylan’s controversial Glastonbury set, Mr Davie insisted “I don’t think I misread [the situation]”.
Bob Vylan performing on the West Holts Stage. Pic: PA
He said the Vylan performance was “absolutely an antisemitic broadcast,” was “deeply disturbing” and admitted “the BBC made a very significant mistake”.
Mr Davie said when he became aware of the issue, around 5pm on the afternoon of the live broadcast, his approach was “very quick,” and he said, “Get it off on demand, we’re not broadcasting this guy”. He added, “I think I did the right thing”.
Speaking to the decision to continue broadcasting the set despite the chants, Mr Davie said he had to be “proportionate” in his judgement following an ongoing investigation but added that there will be “consequences for individuals that we’re working through at the moment.”
Irish rap trio Kneecap appeared on the same stage directly after Bob Vylan and led the Glastonbury audience in “Free Palestine” chants, but their set was not streamed live.
Thomas Skinner. Pic: PA
Davie on Strictly casting backlash: ‘We’ve cut the list down too far’
When asked about the decision to cast ex-Apprentice contestant Tom Skinner on Strictly Come Dancing, Mr Davie said it was “not my decision” and that he “was not an expert on the individual per se”.
Mr Davie said it was the decision of “the production team,” who he said “thought would be interesting to the audience”.
There was criticism following the announcement that Skinner, who now has a large social media following, would be competing in the forthcoming series of Strictly, with some feeling he was “too controversial” due to posts saying it is “not far-right” to be “flying your flag and loving your country”, and complaining “it ain’t safe out there anymore” in London, saying the city is “hostile” and “tense”.
Mr Davie said: “I think it’s fine to cast an individual as long as they’re within boundaries”.
When asked what those boundaries were, he said: “If someone has broadcast things that you know are totally unacceptable [and] racist, you know, we don’t want anywhere near our shows. That’s obvious. That’s what our [production] team have to judge.”
He added: “I don’t think it’s right to say, ‘We won’t have anyone who’s ever said anything that you either disagree with is slightly controversial on social media’. I don’t think that works, frankly. I just think we’ve cut the list down too far nowadays“.
