BBC editor’s TWITTER clarification after ‘attack’ on Sturgeon in TELEVISION report. Where’s the TV apology?

Nicola Sturgeon: “Never in my entire political career have I ‘enjoyed’ anything less than this.”

Sarah Smith should not be allowed to get away with a mere attempt at clarification of this on Twitter alone, where her words will be seen by a tiny few, compared with those who saw her report.

Scottish viewers of BBC news were left fuming after Ms Smith gave a report in which she clearly stated that First Minister Nicola Sturgeon was “enjoying” setting her own rules for the Covid-19 lockdown. Ms Sturgeon denied the claim:

Responses on Twitter have been uniformly along these lines:

https://twitter.com/PoliticsScot/status/1262530815633821696

Ms Smith has tweeted a claim that she meant Ms Sturgeon was “embracing” the opportunity to make law on Covid-19 – and has received equally short shrift from the object of her comment:

It isn’t an apology, is it?

That’s why I’m saying Ms Smith should return to Scottish screens and broadcast a full and frank apology for this astonishing piece of editorialising.

It was never her place to suggest that Ms Sturgeon was enjoying an inappropriate emotional response to the responsibility of setting policy on what is a life-and-death matter for millions of people.

And it seems clear that, for allowing this, the BBC as a whole must change its ways (and explain how it will achieve this).

 

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5 Comments

  1. Roger GOUGH May 19, 2020 at 11:35 am - Reply

    Snowflakes. Ms Sturgeon could have referred to it, refuted it and left it. Why give the BBC the publicity?

    • Mike Sivier May 25, 2020 at 10:07 am - Reply

      This was a politically-biased attack on a non-Tory politician by a BBC journalist who should have been impartial. It deserved to be highlighted, otherwise the BBC would have got away with influencing millions of people in a highly partisan manner that is entirely inappropriate for any news outlet – as you know perfectly well.

  2. Jeffrey Davies May 19, 2020 at 12:45 pm - Reply

    When did BBC give us the real news all we get is
    Their view and it’s getting worse

  3. J Edington May 19, 2020 at 2:24 pm - Reply

    Sarah Smith is an embarrassment to Scotland. She is so filled with hatred of the SNP, for annihilating Labour’s hold on Scotland, that this comment is actually pretty mild compared to her usual. Under the circumstances, her father must be thrashing in his grave.

    • Mike Sivier May 19, 2020 at 6:20 pm - Reply

      Really? You say she’s LABOUR? Wow. That’s a rarity in BBC News. Evidence?

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