BBC radio host quits over use of racial slur in news report


AP | Published: August 09, 2020 14:19:22 | Updated: August 19, 2020 14:08:34


This July 19, 2017 photo shows the main entrance to the headquarters of the publicly funded BBC in London — AP/Files

British radio host Sideman has quit the BBC over the corporation’s decision to include a racial slur in a news report about a racist attack.

Sideman, who appeared on music station Radio 1Xtra, said in an Instagram post on Saturday that broadcasting the word “feels like a slap in the face to our community.”

The comedian and broadcaster, whose real name is David Whitely, said that “with no apology (from the BBC) I just don’t feel comfortable being aligned with the organization.”

The BBC included the word when reporting last month on a violent attack on a young Black man in Bristol, a city in southwest England. The attackers are reported to have yelled the offensive term as they ran into the 21-year-old with a car.

The victim needed hospital treatment for a broken leg and other injuries.

The BBC has defended the decision to use the word, saying it wanted to convey the racist nature of the attack and “gave adequate warnings that upsetting images and language would be used.”

On Thursday the BBC said it had received more than 18,000 complaints about the broadcast.

Share if you like