BBC upholds complaints over racial slur in Baftas broadcast

BBC Addresses Racial Slur Incident in Bafta Coverage

The BBC’s Executive Complaints Unit (ECU) confirmed that the broadcast of a racial slur during the Bafta Film Awards violated the corporation’s editorial standards. The incident occurred in February when a Tourette syndrome advocate inadvertently used the slur while actors Michael B Jordan and Delroy Lindo were hosting a category at the event. The unedited moment was included in the BBC One broadcast, which aired two hours later, and the ceremony remained accessible on iPlayer for the following day.

Unintentional Breach of Standards

Kate Phillips, the BBC’s chief content officer, stated that the ECU found the inclusion of the slur in the live transmission was a clear breach of editorial guidelines. However, she emphasized that the error was not deliberate. “The ECU concluded the word should not have made it to air, but the oversight was unintentional,” Phillips said.

“The production team did not hear the n-word at the time it was spoken and therefore made no decision to retain it in the broadcast,” Phillips added.

Complaints and iPlayer Delay

The ECU received numerous complaints about the BBC’s handling of the event, focusing on editorial standards related to harm and offense. The unit noted that the unedited version of the ceremony remaining on iPlayer until Monday morning compounded the issue. “The prolonged availability of the unedited recording worsened the impact of the inadvertent use of the n-word,” the report stated.

Apology and Process Improvements

Phillips outlined steps to strengthen pre-event planning, live production, and iPlayer removal protocols. She also sent personal apologies to Delroy Lindo, Michael B Jordan, and Wunmi Mosaku, as well as Tourette’s activist John Davidson. “The ECU accepted this was a genuine mistake, particularly since the team did edit out a later instance of the same word,” she explained.

“There was confusion about whether the n-word was audible on the recording, leading to a delay in removing the stream,” Phillips said.

Reactions from Industry and Officials

Best supporting actress winner Wunmi Mosaku shared her personal impact, stating she had “no hard feeling” toward John Davidson but noted the BBC’s failure to remove the slur had disturbed her. “It kept me awake at night and brought tears to my eyes,” she told Entertainment Weekly.

“The BBC should have worked harder to prevent my words from being aired,” Davidson remarked, questioning his proximity to the microphone.

Director Kirk Jones expressed disappointment, calling the situation “a letdown” for Davidson. Culture secretary Lisa Nandy labeled the broadcast “completely unacceptable and harmful,” while Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch described it as “a horrible mistake.” Bafta host Alan Cumming also apologized for the “trauma-triggering” nature of the event.

Edit of “Free Palestine” Speech Dismissed

Meanwhile, the ECU dismissed many complaints regarding the BBC’s decision to shorten the speech of director Akinola Davies Jr, who had said “Free Palestine” while accepting the best debut award for his film My Father’s Shadow. The two-and-a-half minute speech was trimmed to about a minute for broadcast, with the BBC citing time constraints as the reason. The ECU supported this explanation, stating the edits were not driven by bias.