BBC upholds complaints over racial slur in Baftas broadcast
BBC upholds complaints over racial slur in Baftas broadcast
Unintentional use of slur sparks editorial review
A racial slur uttered during the Bafta Film Awards was deemed to have violated the BBC’s editorial guidelines by its executive complaints unit. The incident occurred in February when a Tourette syndrome advocate inadvertently shouted the n-word while Michael B Jordan and Delroy Lindo were hosting a segment. The unedited sound was included in the BBC One broadcast, which aired two hours later, and remained accessible on iPlayer for the following day.
“The ECU found this should not have made it to air and it was a clear breach of our editorial standards,” stated Kate Phillips, BBC’s chief content officer. However, she emphasized that “the breach was not intentional.” Phillips noted the production team was unaware of the word’s presence at the time and did not make a deliberate choice to retain it.
ECU highlights iPlayer delay as aggravating factor
The ECU received numerous complaints about the BBC’s handling of the ceremony. Its report confirmed that the inclusion of the n-word was offensive and lacked editorial justification, but clarified the error was unintentional. It also criticized the decision to keep the unedited coverage on iPlayer overnight, calling it a “serious mistake” that intensified the harm caused by the slip.
“The fact that the unedited recording remained available for so long aggravated the offence caused by the inadvertent inclusion of the n-word,” the ECU said. Phillips added that the team had “correctly identified and edited out a subsequent use of the same word,” indicating they followed pre-established protocols for handling offensive language.
Apologies and process improvements announced
Phillips apologized directly to the individuals involved, including John Davidson, the Tourette’s activist, and Wunmi Mosaku, who won best supporting actress. She outlined measures to strengthen pre-event planning, live production, and iPlayer takedown procedures. Davidson, whose life story film was nominated, expressed frustration, questioning why he had been positioned close to a microphone.
Other complaints dismissed regarding ‘Free Palestine’ edits
While the ECU upheld the racial slur incident, it dismissed many complaints about the BBC cutting “Free Palestine” from an acceptance speech. Akinola Davies Jr, who won best debut for his film *My Father’s Shadow*, had spoken for two-and-a-half minutes on stage, but his remarks were condensed to about a minute for broadcast. The ECU supported the BBC’s explanation that the edit was due to time constraints, not bias.
Public reactions to the controversy
Culture secretary Lisa Nandy described the broadcast as “completely unacceptable and harmful,” while Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch called it a “horrible mistake.” Host Alan Cumming also apologized for the trauma-triggering nature of the event. Director Kirk Jones criticized the handling of the incident, stating Davidson was “let down” by the outcome.
