THE BBC has sought to clarify its decision to uphold a complaint against presenter Naga Munchetty after facing public criticism from its own staff.
Munchetty was deemed to have breached editorial guidelines with remarks on racist comments by US president Donald Trump.
The BBC has now published a clarification over the decision, arguing that by commenting on Trump's "possible motive" and the "potential consequences" of his statement, Munchetty had gone "beyond what the guidelines allow for".
The decision was condemned by BBC correspondents Gabriel Gatehouse and Sangita Myska, as well as former China editor Carrie Gracie.
Gatehouse tweeted: “I propose a little thought experiment: if a BBC presenter suggested on air that a black Brit should ‘go back to where they came from’ and viewers complained the remark was racist, would the BBC uphold such a complaint? One would hope so.”
I propose a little thought experiment: if a BBC presenter suggested on air that a black Brit should “go back to where they came from” and viewers complained the remark was racist, would the BBC uphold such a complaint? One would hope so. Ergo...?
— Gabriel Gatehouse (@ggatehouse) September 25, 2019
Presenting BBC Breakfast, Munchetty had responded to Trump telling four female congresswomen of colour to "go back to the totally broken and crime infested places from which they came".
She explained: "Every time I've been told as a woman of colour to 'go home', to 'go back to where I've come from', that was embedded in racism.
"Now, I'm not accusing anyone of anything here, but you know what certain phrases mean."
"I've been told as a woman of colour to 'go home'..."@BBCNaga shares her experience as we discuss the reaction to comments made by President Trump. pic.twitter.com/u0HL5tEdgt
— BBC Breakfast (@BBCBreakfast) July 17, 2019
Asked how she felt about the president using such language, she went on: “Furious. Absolutely furious, and I can imagine lots of people in this country will be feeling absolutely furious a man in that position thinks it's OK to skirt the lines by using language like that.”
She added: "Anyway, I'm not here to give my opinion."
Despite the BBC sharing the clip on social media, its executive complaints unit (ECU) declared that she breached the broadcaster's guidelines.
READ MORE: BBC rules presenter 'breached guidelines' with comments on Trump
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, MP David Lammy and Channel 4 presenter Krishnan Guru-Murthy were among those to question the ruling.
When you think about what those (mostly) older white men have got away with saying on the BBC and Twitter day after day this is a quite perplexing finding. https://t.co/k8CYUc1irS
— Krishnan Guru-Murthy (@krishgm) September 25, 2019
In a statement explaining their reasoning, the BBC said: "Due impartiality does not require absolute neutrality on every issue or detachment from fundamental democratic principles. And the president's remarks were widely regarded as racist and condemned in the UK across the political spectrum.
"Ms Munchetty had been pressed to comment by her co-presenter and had a legitimate, personal reason for feeling strongly on this issue. She was therefore in our view entitled to give a personal response to the phrase 'go to back to your own country', as it was rooted in her own experience of racism and in a generally accepted interpretation of that phrase."
"But it is also evident that Ms Munchetty, despite at the end of the exchange acknowledging 'I am not here to give my opinion', did comment directly and critically on the possible motive for, and potential consequences of, the president's conduct, which by their nature were a matter for legitimate discussion and debate.
“This, in our view, went beyond what the Guidelines allow for under these circumstances, and on those grounds I am therefore upholding your complaint."
A summary of the complaint and the ECU's decision on what action to take, if any, will be published on the BBC's online complaints pages and will "include a note of any action taken as a result of the finding", the BBC added.
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