Channel 4 boss Andy Duncan yesterday claimed that the comments towards Shilpa Shetty in the Big Brother house aren’t racist. Duncan told reporters:
“What constitutes racism is a complex question. We have been monitoring extremely carefully events in the house and have reached the view that we cannot with certainty say that the comments directed at Shilpa have been racially motivated or whether they stem from broader cultural and social differences.
By sticking two fingers up to widespread public unease in this fashion Duncan has fatally undermined his own recent calls for public funding.
Only a few days ago the Channel 4 chief executive told The Independent on Sunday the need to address an almost two thirds collapse in profits meant he had to make tough decisions:
“You end up cutting high-quality programmes. Ultimately we have no choice. You cut off your nose to spite your face. It gets you into a downward spiral of ratings which in turn takes down advertising revenue.”
“If we want a strong public service broadcasting system going forward, it’s essential that some of that analogue spectrum is reallocated back to public service broadcasters [such as Channel 4 and the BBC]. We have to convince Ofcom and the Treasury [of that].”
Announcing the new Licence Fee settlement earlier this week Culture Secretary Tessa Jowell recently suggested that the BBC may be forced to give Channel 4 up to £14million from the fee to help plug the funding gap.
Those politicians who considering alternate funding for the corporation should ensure they recall the public’s revulsion in the wake of Channel 4’s ongoing willingness to broadcast and profit from racist filth.
Related forum discussion: Big Brother Shilpa Shetty Racism Article
