GARY Lineker has hit out at the BBC over its refusal to show a documentary about the plight of medics in Gaza, saying it should “hold its head in shame”.
The former Match of the Day presenter openly criticised the BBC for the first time since he left in May, saying people at “the very top” of the broadcaster had been failing over the conflict.
Lineker’s comments come after Channel 4 picked up the documentary, Gaza: Doctors Under Attack, which the BBC would not air despite commissioning the programme, citing concerns that it would “not meet the high standards” of impartiality.
The former footballer turned broadcaster left Match of the Day after he apologised for sharing online material with antisemitic connotations.
According to The Guardian, a “clearly emotional” Lineker was speaking at a private viewing of the Gaza medics documentary in London on Thursday night, where he led a question-and-answer session with the producers after the showing.
“It needed to be seen, it really did need to be seen – I think everyone would agree with that,” he said.
“I think the BBC should hold its head in shame."
Lineker added: “As someone who’s worked for the corporation for 30 years, to see the way it’s declined in the last year or two has been devastating really, because I’ve defended it and defended it against claims that it’s partial. It talks about impartiality all the time.
“The truth is at the moment, [there is a problem] at the very top of the BBC. Not [all] the BBC because there are thousands and thousands of people that work at the BBC, that are good people, that understand what is going on here and can see it.
“We see it on our phones every day. The problem is they’re bowing to the pressure from the top. This is a worry and I think time’s coming where a lot of people are going to be answerable to this, and complicity is something that will come to many.”
The BBC did not wish to respond to Lineker’s comments, according to reports.
Responding to a video of Lineker’s comments, BBC Radio 5 presenter Nihal Arthanayake said: “Gary Lineker is a good man. He is spot on about the BBC.”
The BBC had commissioned Gaza: Doctors Under Attack more than a year ago from the independent production company Basement Films, but had delayed airing it until an ongoing review into a different programme on the region was completed.
The broadcaster said in June it would not show the film due to concerns it may create “a perception of partiality that would not meet the high standards that the public rightly expect”.
Following the BBC’s decision to drop the film, there has reportedly been considerable internal unrest over the failure to broadcast the programme, with the corporation's director general, Tim Davie, facing questions about it at a recent virtual meeting with staff.
More than 100 BBC staff signed a letter criticising the decision to drop the film.
Some 111 BBC journalists have also called for Robbie Gibb, the controversial BBC board member for England, to be removed from the role over his impact on the broadcaster’s reporting.
Gibb’s position on the BBC editorial standards committee is also “untenable” as his well-known political affiliations mean the BBC is not reporting on Israel “without fear or favour”, a letter coordinated by BBC insiders said.
