The BBC issued an apology for schedule changes, after several BBC TV and radio sports shows have been pulled at the last minute, including Football Focus, Final Score and Fighting Talk as the British state media faced an escalating crisis Saturday over its suspension of former football star and program host Gary Lineker for comments criticizing the British government’s new asylum policy.
As a growing number of players and presenters rallied to Lineker’s support, Britain’s national broadcaster faced allegations of political bias and suppressing free speech, as well as praise from some Conservative politicians.
It’s worth mentioning that the controversy began with a tweet on Tuesday from Lineker’s account – which has 8.7 million followers – describing the government’s plan to detain and deport migrants arriving by boat as “an immeasurably cruel policy directed at the most vulnerable people in language that is not dissimilar to that used by Germany in the 30s.”
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Presenters of the BBC’s lunchtime “Football Focus” and early evening “Final Score” said they would not appear on the programs in solidarity with Lineker, who was suspended from hosting popular late-night highlights show “Match of the Day” over a Twitter post that compared lawmakers’ language about migrants to that used in Nazi Germany.
The BBC pulled “Football Focus” from its schedule on Saturday, replacing it with an episode of antiques show “Bargain Hunt.” One of the network’s radio stations, 5 Live, did not air one of its lunchtime shows after a presenter withdrew from hosting. It was replaced with pre-recorded content.
It said it recognized the changes would be “disappointing” for fans and it was “working hard to resolve the situation”.
The BBC said Lineker breached its social media guidelines for tweeting about the government’s new migration law.
The union said it was a “common sense solution” to avoid players facing sanctions for breaching their broadcast commitments.
Play-by-play commentators scheduled to work games on Saturday also said they would not do so.
Lineker, whose club career included spells with Barcelona, Tottenham, Everton and Leicester, was the leading scorer at the 1986 World Cup and finished his international career with 48 goals in 80 matches for England.
