Complaint
The programme included an item on Andrew Tate, prompted by his detention in Romania during which the presenter read out some words from one of Andrew Tate’s videos, in order (as she explained) that the audience “can understand how vile his language is and his views are”. A viewer complained that the words had been taken out of context in a way which gave a misleading impression of Mr Tate’s views. The ECU considered the complaint in the light of the BBC’s standards of accuracy.
Outcome
The words in question, spoken on the video while Mr Tate was holding a machete, were “It’s bang out the machete, boom in her face and grip her by the neck. “Shut up bitch”, that’s how it goes – slap, slap, grab, choke, shut up, sex”. The complainant pointed out that the scenario was an imaginary one in which a woman was making as if to attack Mr Tate with a machete, but this element of context seemed to the ECU unlikely to have affected the impression viewers would have formed of his language and views.
Not Upheld