Post by Teddy Bear on Apr 20, 2014 17:04:27 GMT
One of the longest serving black journalists at the BBC, Kurt Barling, has spoken out about the corporation's 'lack of respect for its ethnic minority staff', after he was just made redundant.
Now it may well be a display of sour grapes over the redundancy, but knowing the BBC hypocritical attitude displayed in so many areas, if his perceptions and criticisms are true and accurate it really wouldn't surprise me. This also comes in a week where Lenny Henry has been calling for a boycott of the licence fee to force the BBC to hire more ethnics in their entertainment departments. Personally I'd rather the BBC was more concerned with quality and diversity of viewpoints more than diversity of colour regardless of ethnic origins.
It's also interesting that the last interview Barling did was for Newsnight with the controversial man who was just acquitted for the Blakelock murder. Many people were quite angry at the BBC for airing his distasteful views, even if he was found not guilty he clearly agreed with the treatment of Keith Blakelock. I'm wondering if the BBC purposefully picked Barling to do this knowing it was going to be his last.
Now it may well be a display of sour grapes over the redundancy, but knowing the BBC hypocritical attitude displayed in so many areas, if his perceptions and criticisms are true and accurate it really wouldn't surprise me. This also comes in a week where Lenny Henry has been calling for a boycott of the licence fee to force the BBC to hire more ethnics in their entertainment departments. Personally I'd rather the BBC was more concerned with quality and diversity of viewpoints more than diversity of colour regardless of ethnic origins.
It's also interesting that the last interview Barling did was for Newsnight with the controversial man who was just acquitted for the Blakelock murder. Many people were quite angry at the BBC for airing his distasteful views, even if he was found not guilty he clearly agreed with the treatment of Keith Blakelock. I'm wondering if the BBC purposefully picked Barling to do this knowing it was going to be his last.
BBC 'doesn't repect or value ethnic minority staff', says axed reporter
Kurt Barling said the corporation is “serviced by a privately-educated elite that is only fractionally more diverse today than when I joined in 1989”
By Keith Perry
A veteran black journalist has accused the BBC of failing to value or respect its ethnic minority staff.
Kurt Barling was one of the BBC’s longest-serving ethnic minority journalists until last week when he was made redundant after a 25-year-long career.
Writing for the Sunday Times, Mr Barling, who was axed as part of the corporation’s cuts to save £700 million a year, said: “I have seen many talented people, black and white, leave the BBC because they weren’t nurtured, respected or valued…I’m not surprised many [black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME)] are not being replaced. Managers still recruit and promote their own image.”
Mr Barling, who worked primarily for BBC London and is professor of journalism at Middlesex University, said the corporation is “serviced by a privately-edcucated elite that is only fractionally more diverse today than when I joined in 1989”.
His comments come after the actor and comedian Lenny Henry called on the BBC to reverse a sharp decline in the number of BAME people working in television.
The Creative Skillset network, which supports skills and training in the industry says the proportion of BAME workers fell by a third to 5.4 per cent between 2006 and 2012. Mr Henry said last month: “That’s an appalling percentage."
Across the corporation 12.4 per cent of all staff are BAME according to the BBC’s latest figures from September 2013.
Mr Barling, who was inspired to become a journalist after witnessing the Broadwater Farm estate riot in 1985 wrote: “I am heartened that now the most senior levels of management recognise…the BBC has a diversity problem. But everyone below there seems to be either defensive and /or in a collective state of denial.
“There is no point in proclaiming initiatives and schemes if they don’t deliver meaningful change.”
Mr Barling's final report for the corporation was an interview for Newsnight with Nicky Jacobs, after he was found not guilty of the murder of PC Keith Blakelock during the Broadwater riot.
With the BBC facing increasing competition, Mr Barling said: "Can young journalists from diverse backgrounds, with talent, aspire to be the star reporters and BBC managers of the future if they do not see their likeness on screen or in senior positions in broadcasting? This is the most powerful argument for ensuring the BBC retains long serving, experienced BAME role-model journalists.
"I fear that a public service institution that fails to live up to its promises on issues like diversity will eventually find itself undone by its own hypocrisy."
The BBC said: "Diversity is an industry-wide issue and the BBC is leading efforts to address this.
"We are working with groups such as the Stephen Lawrence Trust and the Mama Youth Project to bring talented young people from diverse backgrounds into the BBC."
Kurt Barling said the corporation is “serviced by a privately-educated elite that is only fractionally more diverse today than when I joined in 1989”
By Keith Perry
A veteran black journalist has accused the BBC of failing to value or respect its ethnic minority staff.
Kurt Barling was one of the BBC’s longest-serving ethnic minority journalists until last week when he was made redundant after a 25-year-long career.
Writing for the Sunday Times, Mr Barling, who was axed as part of the corporation’s cuts to save £700 million a year, said: “I have seen many talented people, black and white, leave the BBC because they weren’t nurtured, respected or valued…I’m not surprised many [black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME)] are not being replaced. Managers still recruit and promote their own image.”
Mr Barling, who worked primarily for BBC London and is professor of journalism at Middlesex University, said the corporation is “serviced by a privately-edcucated elite that is only fractionally more diverse today than when I joined in 1989”.
His comments come after the actor and comedian Lenny Henry called on the BBC to reverse a sharp decline in the number of BAME people working in television.
The Creative Skillset network, which supports skills and training in the industry says the proportion of BAME workers fell by a third to 5.4 per cent between 2006 and 2012. Mr Henry said last month: “That’s an appalling percentage."
Across the corporation 12.4 per cent of all staff are BAME according to the BBC’s latest figures from September 2013.
Mr Barling, who was inspired to become a journalist after witnessing the Broadwater Farm estate riot in 1985 wrote: “I am heartened that now the most senior levels of management recognise…the BBC has a diversity problem. But everyone below there seems to be either defensive and /or in a collective state of denial.
“There is no point in proclaiming initiatives and schemes if they don’t deliver meaningful change.”
Mr Barling's final report for the corporation was an interview for Newsnight with Nicky Jacobs, after he was found not guilty of the murder of PC Keith Blakelock during the Broadwater riot.
With the BBC facing increasing competition, Mr Barling said: "Can young journalists from diverse backgrounds, with talent, aspire to be the star reporters and BBC managers of the future if they do not see their likeness on screen or in senior positions in broadcasting? This is the most powerful argument for ensuring the BBC retains long serving, experienced BAME role-model journalists.
"I fear that a public service institution that fails to live up to its promises on issues like diversity will eventually find itself undone by its own hypocrisy."
The BBC said: "Diversity is an industry-wide issue and the BBC is leading efforts to address this.
"We are working with groups such as the Stephen Lawrence Trust and the Mama Youth Project to bring talented young people from diverse backgrounds into the BBC."