The BBC has found that it breached its editorial standards when it broadcast a racial slur during the Bafta awards ceremony in February. The corporation's executive complaints unit (ECU) ruled that the inclusion of the N-word, shouted by Tourette syndrome campaigner John Davidson, was 'highly offensive' and had 'no editorial justification', though the breach was deemed unintentional.
The slur occurred as actors Delroy Lindo and Michael B Jordan were presenting an award for the film 'Sinners'. Davidson, whose memoir inspired the film, shouted the word from the audience. Producers monitoring the broadcast from an outside truck did not hear the slur, and it remained on BBC iPlayer overnight before being removed. The BBC has apologised for the incident.
The ECU found that the failure to remove the slur from iPlayer promptly was a 'serious mistake' that 'aggravated the offence', constituting a further breach of standards. The review noted that while the word was indistinct in the initial broadcast, the BBC received complaints during and shortly after the programme, indicating it was not entirely unintelligible.
BBC chief content officer Kate Phillips said she had written to Lindo, Jordan, and Davidson to apologise directly, and acknowledged the hurt caused to colleagues and audiences. The BBC is strengthening pre-event risk assessments and reviewing production setups for live events to prevent future breaches.
Separate complaints that the BBC misapplied impartiality standards by editing out remarks including 'free Palestine' from Akinola Davies Jr's acceptance speech were not upheld. The ECU found the editing was due to time constraints, not impartiality considerations.
