The vastly in style sports activities presenter had sparked a disaster on the public broadcaster, after tweeting about UK asylum plans.
Gary Lineker will return as presenter of flagship BBC soccer present Match of the Day, the broadcaster mentioned on Monday, ending a disaster sparked by his criticism of the UK authorities’s new asylum coverage,
“Gary is a valued a part of the BBC and I understand how a lot the BBC means to Gary, and I look ahead to him presenting our protection this coming weekend,” mentioned BBC director-general Tim Davie.
He added that the sports activities presenter had agreed to abide by the broadcaster’s editorial pointers till a overview of its social media guidelines had been accomplished.
The previous England footballer was eliminated after utilizing Twitter to check the language used to launch the brand new coverage to the rhetoric of Nazi-era Germany.
Fellow presenters, pundits and commentators then refused to work over the weekend in help, throwing the broadcaster’s sports activities protection into disarray.
Lineker tweeted on Monday: “I can’t wait to get again within the MOTD chair on Saturday.
“Nonetheless tough the previous few days have been, it merely does not examine to having to flee your private home from persecution or conflict to hunt refuge in a land far-off.”
This 3 minute clip from 2021 continues to be being broadly shared. It is useful if you wish to perceive how Gary Lineker feels in regards to the concern of refugees, about his relationship with the BBC – and in regards to the thought of the BBC telling him what he can and may’t tweet. pic.twitter.com/f5EWdx68tQ
— Ros Atkins (@BBCRosAtkins) Mar 12, 2023
Davie apologized for the disruption to the service, saying he acknowledged the “potential confusion attributable to the grey areas of the BBC’s social media steering”.
Impartiality is necessary to the BBC. That could be a tough balancing act to get proper the place individuals are topic to completely different contracts and on air positions, and with completely different audiences and social media profiles,” he mentioned.
An impartial overview into the steering will probably be performed, together with the way it applies to freelancers akin to Lineker, he added.
