Complaint
A listener complained of excessive attention to trans issues, saying that a speaker in the previous day’s edition of the programme had “quoted audience response figures in order to give the impression that a majority of respondents asked for more coverage of transgender issues” – an impression he thought unlikely to be accurate or impartial. The ECU considered the complaint in the light of the BBC’s standards of accuracy and impartiality.
Outcome
In fact the previous day’s edition had included no citation of audience response figures in support of the impression that a majority had requested more coverage of trans issues. The only reference to the topic was by the presenter, who said:
Now just a quick thank you to the many of you who wrote in yesterday after the lengthy discussion on the programme on gender identity. It was a conversation between feminist philosopher Kathleen Stock and trans woman and broadcaster India Willoughby. The social media reaction and some of our inbox reflects the very polarised view on this with a good degree of anger and sometimes rudeness, but we were pleased that many of you did appreciate the discussion and found it enlightening. You can listen back to it on BBC Sounds.
It appeared likely to the ECU that these comments had been misconstrued by the complainant and that, correctly understood, they provided no basis for a finding of inaccuracy or lack of impartiality.
Not Upheld