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Latest BBC row
Carol Thatcher was fired by the BBC for a comment she made in the "green room": referring to a tennis player as a "golliwog".
There's a lot of debate in the media about whether the BBC overreacted. According to Jay Hunt, the BBC controller she was fired because her comment offended another person in the room and she flatly refused to apologise.
It sounds awfully familiar, doesn't it? This is the exact point that is made over and over whenever the race issue explodes in fandom. It doesn't matter if she was only kidding. It doesn't matter if she didn't intend to hurt anyone. It only matters that she did hurt another person. When it's brought to your attention that you've caused another human being pain, a decent person apologises. Not "Sorry, but..." Just "Sorry." Or, better still, "Sorry, and I'll try to ensure it doesn't happen again." If you can't manage that, you're not a decent person and you are a racist.
The other side of the debate is the comparison to the Jonathan Ross/Russell Brand incident. People keep bringing this up but it is not a fair comparison. For starters, there were other people involved in Sachsgate and two of them did lose their jobs. Ross apologised - not very sincerely, but he did - and he was suspended.
No, the comparison that gives away the real attitude of the BBC isn't Sachsgate. It's Jeremy Clarkson. He's gotten away with hate speech on many occasions, and not in any green room: on the air. When five women were murdered in Ipswich he thought it fine fodder for comedy. He jokes about killing gypsies. Not only does he still have his job, he's bloody well encouraged to keep at it. The BBC's excuse? It's what people expect from Top Gear.
The truth is the BBC does apply a double standard. Racism is fine...just not when it's directed at black people. Misogyny is fine as long as the target audience is male (or when it's on Torchwood, and no, I'm never letting that one go). Homophobia is fine as long as it's "funny".
Sorry, BBC. You need to do better than that.
There's a lot of debate in the media about whether the BBC overreacted. According to Jay Hunt, the BBC controller she was fired because her comment offended another person in the room and she flatly refused to apologise.
It sounds awfully familiar, doesn't it? This is the exact point that is made over and over whenever the race issue explodes in fandom. It doesn't matter if she was only kidding. It doesn't matter if she didn't intend to hurt anyone. It only matters that she did hurt another person. When it's brought to your attention that you've caused another human being pain, a decent person apologises. Not "Sorry, but..." Just "Sorry." Or, better still, "Sorry, and I'll try to ensure it doesn't happen again." If you can't manage that, you're not a decent person and you are a racist.
The other side of the debate is the comparison to the Jonathan Ross/Russell Brand incident. People keep bringing this up but it is not a fair comparison. For starters, there were other people involved in Sachsgate and two of them did lose their jobs. Ross apologised - not very sincerely, but he did - and he was suspended.
No, the comparison that gives away the real attitude of the BBC isn't Sachsgate. It's Jeremy Clarkson. He's gotten away with hate speech on many occasions, and not in any green room: on the air. When five women were murdered in Ipswich he thought it fine fodder for comedy. He jokes about killing gypsies. Not only does he still have his job, he's bloody well encouraged to keep at it. The BBC's excuse? It's what people expect from Top Gear.
The truth is the BBC does apply a double standard. Racism is fine...just not when it's directed at black people. Misogyny is fine as long as the target audience is male (or when it's on Torchwood, and no, I'm never letting that one go). Homophobia is fine as long as it's "funny".
Sorry, BBC. You need to do better than that.
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Yes.
The whole "it was just a joke" thing never holds water. It's a bully's defence. It's how children justify being cruel to other children. To me, protesting it was a joke is another way of saying "Yeah, I know it's indefensible, but I'm bigger than you so I'll do it anyway."