Nick Griffin Question Time invitation 'bonkers', says BBC presenter (22 October 2009):
The BBC's decision to allow the British National Party leader Nick Griffin on Question Time was described as "bonkers" by a well-known presenter today.
The senior presenter, who did not want to be identified, said that the decision had come about because of the BBC's attitude to fairness and predicted that Griffin would create problems on the panel show.
"I thought [the Question Time decision] was bonkers. The problem is he is so careful with his language," the presenter said.
"Because we have all been at the BBC so long, you get this fairness chip implanted. [Management thinks] 'Isn't it better to lift up the rock and let the bug crawl out?'"
The BBC insider said they feared that Griffin could even find favour with the audience. "You can imagine him talking about British soldiers as 'our boys' and getting a round of applause," they added.
They also disagreed with the inclusion of Conservative peer Baroness Warsi.
"Warsi can be a bit shrill. I wish they'd chosen a Conservative who is a bit more erudite."
Another BBC insider said there was little or no sign of a staff rebellion. The demonstrators and extra security were a more pressing matter, they added.
"The only time I've heard it mentioned is when someone wondered how they were going to get into work," this insider said.
A third BBC staff member said the real story would be how the programme handled Griffin, not the decision to include him in the panel.
"In the end you can't really argue with putting them on. It's how it's done in the end," this source said. "It will be about the programme and how he is interrogated. There will be lots of pantomime and people walking out. Any whiff of Griffin getting a easy ride will be highly controversial."
This insider disagreed that Griffin would get an easy ride because of the Question Time format, where members of the public ask the panel questions. "There will be lots of angry questions, of course BBC presenters can't be seen to be angry."
BBC fires presenter for turban remarks (12 November 2008):
The BBC has dismissed a local radio presenter in Bristol after she made "completely unacceptable comments" about Asian cab drivers.
Sam Mason, who hosted an afternoon show on BBC Radio Bristol, called a taxi for her 14-year-old daughter - while off-air - asking them not to send an Asian driver because "a guy with a turban might freak her out".
"I know this sounds really racist, but I'm not being - please, don't send anyone like, you know what I mean," said asked the operator. "An English person would be great, a female would be better."
The operator for the unnamed taxi firm, which later sent a recording of the call to the Sun, told Mason it could not penalise Asian drivers and that her request was racist.
"I work at the BBC. I'm far from racist and that uneducated woman has no right to call me one," said Mason when her call was transferred to a supervisor.
"I don't want her to turn up with a guy with a turban on, it's going to freak her out. She's not used to Asians. She's not racist - her godparents are black."
Mason, who joined the BBC in late September, was suspended and dismissed by the BBC 24 hours later.
"Although Sam Mason's remarks were not made on-air, her comments were completely unacceptable," said a spokesman.
"For that reason, she has been informed that she will no longer be working for the BBC with immediate effect."
Indonesian editor charged with offending Islam (21 July 2006):
An Indonesian editor is facing trial for publishing a cartoon of the prophet Muhammad.
Teguh Santosa, the chief editor of the online edition of Rakyat Merdeka, has been charged with offending Islam.
He said he used the image to illustrate a story about how a set of cartoons of Muhammad, first published in a Danish newspaper, had triggered a worldwide controversy.
Teguh Santosa, the chief editor of the online edition of Rakyat Merdeka, has been charged with offending Islam.
He said he used the image to illustrate a story about how a set of cartoons of Muhammad, first published in a Danish newspaper, had triggered a worldwide controversy.
Many newspapers across Europe - although none in Britain - reprinted the images earlier this year, sparking a debate about freedom of expression as well as fierce protests from Muslims.
Mr Santosa removed the image from his website less than a day after readers complained.
"We just wanted to let people know about the cartoons, which were being strongly protested against at that time," Mr Santosa told Associated Press. "I believe I am innocent and ready to face trial."
Mr Santosa will be tried within the next three weeks and faces a maximum penalty of five years imprisonment if found guilty, according to his lawyer.
It is against Islamic law to make visual representations of Allah or Muhammad.
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