BBC accused of passing the buck over Russell Brand conduct
Criticism of the BBC has grown after comments by Russell Brand suggested his broadcaster was aware of and tolerated his behaviour, as Brand was found guilty of rape and sexual assault.
The BBC has come under fire for what critics describe as an attempt to pass responsibility for Russell Brand's conduct elsewhere, after the comedian boasted that his boss at the corporation was "incredibly tolerant" of his sexual behaviour. The remarks have raised fresh questions about how the broadcaster oversaw its presenters during the years Brand was one of its most prominent faces.
Brand has now been found guilty of rape and sexual assault. The offences are tied to the peak of his fame in the 2000s, and the victims include one fan and three other women. He is expected to receive a lengthy custodial sentence, although the sentencing date has not been confirmed.
The criticism of the BBC centres on Brand's own words about his time at the corporation. On air, his jokes included references to rape, killing women and having sex with children. Those comments, critics argue, should have prompted scrutiny of how the broadcaster supervised a presenter whose material was so far outside accepted limits. The claim that his boss had tolerated his behaviour has sharpened that concern, because it suggests the problem was known inside the organisation rather than hidden from it.
The gap between what Brand said on air and what the BBC did in response is at the heart of the criticism. Commentators point out that a presenter's material is normally subject to editorial oversight, and that jokes about rape and killing women would ordinarily raise questions about whether they were challenged or approved. Brand's remarks about his boss, if accepted at face value, would mean that the broadcaster's internal safeguards either failed or were not applied, and that the responsibility for that failure has not yet been openly addressed.
Reaction to the verdict has come from across the media and political spectrum. Comedian Katherine Ryan, who had publicly described Brand as a sexual predator on her own programme, said she felt both grief and relief. Labour figure Andy Burnham praised the victims who spoke out, describing their courage as the reason the case reached a conviction, and called Brand's crimes horrific. Their statements reflect a wider view that the women who came forward carried the weight of the case, and that their accounts are the foundation of the verdict.
Several key questions remain unanswered. The full extent of what the BBC knew about Brand's conduct at the time has not been established, and it has not been stated whether the corporation faces a formal review of its handling of the matter. The length of the sentence is also not yet set. Until those points are clarified, scrutiny of the broadcaster's oversight is likely to continue alongside the court process, and the question of who inside the BBC was responsible for supervising Brand will remain central to the debate.
Source: dailymail.com
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