BBC bosses admit news segment when presenter told viewers she was ‘gleeful’ after Boris Johnson pulled out of Tory leadership race DID break impartiality rules
- Martine Croxall failed to meet impartiality expectations during a papers review
- It also found insufficient challenge to some opinions expressed by guests
BBC bosses have found that an episode of The Papers on its BBC News channel on October 23 failed to meet its editorial standards on impartiality.
Presented by Martine Croxall, the programme was aired at 10.30pm, just 90 minutes after it was announced that former PM Boris Johnson had pulled out of the race to be re-elected as Tory leader following the resignation of Liz Truss.
Ms Croxall said at the beginning of the programme: ‘Can we even show you the front pages just yet, have they arrived? No they haven’t arrived.
‘It’s all a little bit, you know, lastminute.com isn’t it? Because all the front pages were probably out of date by the time we received them.’
She then added: ‘Well this is all very exciting, isn’t it?’ adding: ‘Am I allowed to be this gleeful? Well I am.’
BBC News presenter Martine Croxall presenting the Newspaper Review on BBC News channel and of Boris Johnson’s decision not to run, saying with a big smile: ‘Am I allowed to be this gleeful? Well I am’
The BBC said in a statement: ‘In this programme several remarks and reactions from the presenter caused a significant risk that the audience could believe opinions were being expressed on the Conservative leadership contest.
‘In addition, there was insufficient counter and challenge to some of the opinions expressed by guests on the programme.
‘Taken together, this meant that this edition of The Papers did not meet our editorial standards, as it gave the audience the opportunity to infer an editorial position on the part of the BBC.
‘This does not accord with the BBC’s commitment to editorial impartiality.’
At the time the 53-year-old journalist’s action sparked a furious backlash, with outraged viewers demanding action from regulator Ofcom – or that she is sacked by the BBC.
Ms Croxall never commented on specifically what she was ‘gleeful’ about during the show.
On that Sunday, Mr Johnson claimed he had the nominations needed to make it on to the ballot paper but admitted he could not unite his warring party.
The former prime minister said there was a ‘very good chance’ he could have been back in No 10 by the end of the week if he had stood.
However, his efforts to ‘reach out’ to his rivals, Rishi Sunak and Penny Mordaunt, to work together had not been successful so he was dropping out.
The news broke late into the evening leading to a scramble at newspapers across the UK to rethink their planned edition.
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