Sports coverage is axed after presenters refuse to work, in solidarity with the Match Of The Day host. Read more at straitstimes.com.
LONDON - Britain’s BBC was forced to axe much of its sports coverage on Saturday after presenters refused to work in a show of solidarity with Gary Lineker, as a row over freedom of speech threatens to turn into a crisis for the national broadcaster.
“We are working hard to resolve the situation and hope to do so soon,” the broadcaster said in a statement. The BBC is committed to being politically impartial, but it is now facing criticism from the opposition Labour Party and media commentators who accuse it of silencing Lineker in response to pressure from the Conservative government.
Seeking to resolve the dispute, the BBC said there needed to be an agreed position on Mr Lineker’s use of social media before he can return to presenting.But critics of Mr Lineker’s suspension say he is entitled to his personal opinions because he is not presenting a news programme. That could turn viewers away from the 100-year-old BBC, which is funded by what is in effect a £159 annual “licence fee” tax on all television-watching households.
South Africa Latest News, South Africa Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Mutiny at the BBC: Lineker row causes mounting crisis at UK broadcasterLONDON :Britain's BBC was forced to axe much of its sports coverage on Saturday after presenters refused to work in a show of solidarity with Gary Lineker, as a row over freedom of speech threatens to turn into a crisis for the national broadcaster.Former England soccer captain Lineker, the BBC's highest paid
Read more »
Scott pulls out of BBC show as Lineker row grows in BritainAlex Scott, the host of the BBC's 'Football Focus' TV programme in Britain, said it 'does not feel right' to appear on the show on Saturday after the broadcaster took presenter Gary Lineker off air over his criticism of the government's asylum policy.Other presenters have also pulled out of BBC appearance
Read more »
Scott pulls out of BBC show as Lineker row grows in BritainAlex Scott, the host of the BBC's 'Football Focus' TV programme in Britain, said it 'does not feel right' to appear on the show on Saturday after the broadcaster took presenter Gary Lineker off air over his criticism of the government's asylum policy.Other presenters have also pulled out of BBC appearance
Read more »
Kansas legislature passes bill to ban transgender athletes from girls' sportsKansas' Republican-led legislature on Thursday passed a bill that would ban transgender athletes from playing girls or women's school sports if they were born male. Kansas Governor Laura Kelly, a Democrat, is expected to veto the bill, as she vetoed two similar measures in the previous two years. But t
Read more »
Lineker to 'step back' from BBC presenting after migration rowLONDON :Former England soccer captain Gary Lineker will step back from his role at the BBC following his criticism of the country's migration policy that has sparked a furious row between the government and the corporation's highest paid presenter. Lineker recently likened the government's language on asylum
Read more »
Reaction to Lineker being pulled from presenting by the BBCFormer England captain Gary Lineker has been taken off air by the BBC and will step back from presenting its flagship Match of the Day (MOTD) programme after a row between the government and the presenter over his comments on Britain's migration policy.He was told there has to be an agreed position on his
Read more »