The BBC has been compelled to reply to concerns over the way it covered Phillip Schofield‘s retirement from ITV due to an affair with a younger colleague.
Schofield, 62, admits lying to ITV, his colleagues, and fans about his connection with a This Morning runner.
He later departed This Morning with immediate effect, and his relationship with his former co-host and ‘rock’ Holly Willoughby, 42, is in shambles.
The broadcaster conducted his first interview for the BBC with Amol Rajan, 39, while BBC News prominently covered the issue.
The amount of publicity given to Schofield, on the other hand, has resulted in at least 100 complaints, causing the broadcaster to reply on its own complaints site.
‘Our coverage of the circumstances surrounding Phillip Schofield’s resignation from ITV focused on the serious implications of this story, with allegations that abuse of power and bullying took place at Britain’s biggest commercial broadcaster,’ it said in a statement.
‘Phillip Schofield has been a fixture on British television for nearly four decades, however, this is not a story about celebrity, but about safeguarding procedures, professional conduct and workplace culture.
‘The questions raised over what ITV management had known about these issues at the time have led to the network commissioning an external independent KC led review. ITV’s chief executive Dame Carolyn McCall has also been asked to attend Parliament to answer questions from the Culture, Media and Sport Committee on this matter.
‘Given the significance of the claims being made about Mr Schofield, it was fair to give him a right of reply. We made clear this was his account of events.
‘Amol Rajan used his interview with Mr Schofield to scrutinise the allegations about his conduct, while maintaining the duty of care that we have to all our interviewees.
‘The write-up of the interview has been one of the most read pieces on the BBC News website in the past month, with more than five million page views.’
‘We believe our reporting of this story has been proportionate, reflecting the gravity of the issues at hand,’ the statement concluded. ‘However, we realise not everyone will agree with the stories we decide to cover or the prominence we give them.’
Schofield stated during his interview with Rajan that his TV career was ended and that his girls wouldn’t let him out of their sight, suggesting he had suicidal thoughts.
On Saturday, he put an end to rumours that he would be joining TalkTV.
This Morning airs weekdays at 10am on ITV.
Need support?
For emotional support you can call the Samaritans 24-hour helpline on 116 123, email jo@samaritans.org, visit a Samaritans branch in person or go to the Samaritans website.
If you’re a young person, or concerned about a young person, you can also contact PAPYRUS Prevention of Young Suicide UK. Their HOPELINK digital support platform is open 24/7, or you can call 0800 068 4141, text 07860039967 or email: pat@papyrus-uk.org between the hours of 9am and midnight.
