November 11th 2023.
Carol Vorderman was recently sacked from her BBC Radio Wales gig, which resulted in trans TV star India Willoughby accusing the BBC of hypocrisy. The former Countdown presenter had been hosting the Saturday morning show since 2019, however, she announced that she had breached the BBC's new social media guidelines and was subsequently asked to leave.
The new guidelines, which were published in September, ban the broadcaster's top stars from political campaigning and criticising the character of individual politicians on social media. This has raised questions from Willoughby, who has taken issue with a post by former tennis player and BBC pundit Martina Navratilova. The former tennis pro praised a comment that was labeled as transphobic, yet she has yet to face disciplinary action.
Willoughby shared a screenshot of the post and asked the BBC why they had taken no action. She wrote "In the week Carol Vorderman was given an ultimatum, can someone explain why this is ok from your tennis pundit Martina Navratilova? Any other minority, how would you react? If this was Lineker there'd be hell on. #BBC #DoubleFault."
The new social media guidelines also apply to Gary Lineker, who was taken off air by the BBC after being caught up in a row over impartiality in March. He was allowed to return to his duties after the BBC commissioned an independent review of its social media guidelines.
Describing the BBC's updated social media guidance as "all very sensible", Lineker was one of the stars warned over their social media use. Similarly, Strictly's Claudia Winkleman, Tess Daly, Dragons' Den's Evan Davis, The One Show's Alex Jones, MasterChef's John Torode and Gregg Wallace, and The Apprentice's Lord Alan Sugar and Antiques Roadshow's Fiona Bruce have all been told to adhere to the new rules.
Following her sacking, Vorderman has expressed her gratitude for the overwhelming support she has received from fans. She said "I want to say from my heart, thank you, I am overwhelmed by all of your support, it’s just extraordinary. You know we’re all in this together, and we will, absolutely will make it right, because you’re bloody marvellous, you are."
She also took to social media to speak out against the Tory government, saying "I'll now increase calling out this disgusting Tory govt with facts & data which the right wing media fails to publish."
The BBC released a statement confirming Vorderman's departure, saying "We'd like to thank her for her work and contribution to the station over the past five years."
Vorderman took to social media herself to explain her decision, saying "I'm not prepared to lose my voice on social media, change who I am, or lose the ability to express the strong beliefs I hold about the political turmoil this country finds itself in. Consequently I have now breached the new guidelines and BBC Wales management have decided I must leave."
The BBC's new social media guidelines have raised questions from many people, with many asking why the same rules don't apply to everyone. Whether or not the BBC will address these questions remains to be seen.
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