Some of you may already be aware of this, but for those who aren't...
Breitbart London reports that they've "seen" a statement by the BBC about Stephen Nolan's now notorious exchanges with various callers to his Radio 5 Live show over the migrant crisis.
(I could be mistaken, but it looks as if someone's shared a reply from the BBC Complaints department with them.)
(I could be mistaken, but it looks as if someone's shared a reply from the BBC Complaints department with them.)
Breitbart quotes the BBC as saying the following:
As he would with any caller, particularly one putting forward strong views that some listeners are likely to find upsetting, the presenter challenged Jonathan and asked some searching questions about his opinions and beliefs. At each stage, Jonathan was given the opportunity to answer in full. We believe this was reasonable and expected in the context, while accepting that a couple of the questions might have been better phrased…
So an admission that Stephen Nolan didn't get it quite right, countered by lots of reasons why he essentially really did get it right. (That sounds like the BBC Complaints department to me).
So Jonathan from Swansea had "strong views that some listeners are likely to find upsetting", eh? Well, it didn't upset me, as what he said what quite reasonable.
What this BBC response doesn't answer is the charge that Stephen Nolan then misrepresented what earlier callers said when people began challenging him about it (although maybe that wasn't the bit complained about).
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Incidentally, although I said I wouldn't mention Any Answers again, I did spot Anita Anand putting in a milder version of the 'Are you sitting comfortably in your armchair?' question at one point during yesterday's programme. (I can't face listening to it again to find the exact quote though. If you can bear it, please add it to the comments below).