30/5/22: The BBC’s Executive Complaints Unit has agreed with a complainant that a presenter should not have described “gender-critical” views as “very unpopular”.
The complaint related to an episode of Radio Four’s Front Row that was broadcast in March 2022. Interviewing an author on whether art can be considered separately from the artist, presenter Tom Sutcliffe mentioned “the case of JK Rowling who clearly has a very unpopular opinion regarding gender identity”.
The ECU said it was “potentially misleading” to describe Rowling’s views on gender as “very unpopular” because “while it had clearly proved objectionable to some, there was no conclusive evidence that the objectors represented a majority”.
Sutcliffe had already conceded as much on Radio Four’s Feedback programme, so the ECU did not recommend any further action.
The ECU also dismissed another part of the complaint which argued it was inappropriate to discuss Rowling alongside artists such as R. Kelly, Eric Gill and Adolf Hitler, because it was “in the context of distinguishing between expressing opinions (as JK Rowling had done) and committing criminal acts”. Full ruling here.
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