BBC blasted for ignoring news with ‘witch hunt’ Phillip Schofield coverage | TV & Radio | Showbiz & TV

0

Phillip Schofield sensationally quit This Morning recently after being put under the spotlight with rumours of a feud between him and co-star Holly Willoughby.

After his exit, Phillip, 61, confirmed rumours he had had an affair with a younger male colleague whilst married to his wife, Stephanie Lowe.

Since the confession, ITV has been blasted by other former This Morning employees over its alleged “toxic” environment.

Express.co.uk previously approached ITV for comment.

An emotional Phillip gave a candid interview with the BBC on Wednesday where revealed he had suffered suicidal thoughts, explaining his two daughters “haven’t left me for a moment”.

As with other news outlets, the BBC has given the story a lot of attention but has been criticised for the “witch hunt” on Phillip Schofield as some viewers defended the presenter and called for an end to the coverage.

READ MORE: Alison Hammond breaks down in tears as she watches Phillip’s interview

ITV has said it investigated rumours of an affair between Schofield and the unnamed colleague in 2020, but was “not provided with, and did not find, any evidence of a relationship beyond hearsay and rumour.”

It said that both Schofield and his colleague “categorically and repeatedly denied the rumours” when questioned at the time.

Speaking to BBC’s Amol Rajan, Phillip explained he was “desperately sorry” about the affair he had had with a young ITV runner.

He went on to say that although it had been wrong, it had been a consensual relationship and was not illegal.

He appeared emotional as he stated he had “lost everything” and that his daughters had been scared to leave him alone.

Some BBC viewers have since aired concern for Phillip and blasted the broadcaster for its ongoing coverage of the story.

On Saturday’s BBC Breakfast, the show’s Newswatch segment addressed complaints made to the channel throughout the week.

One viewer had written: “The continuing navel-gazing by the TV media gives the impression that something illegal has happened. If it came to light that such was the case, then it would bear such coverage, but until then it smacks of playing to the lowest common denominator. We should have moved on from this and I expect better from the BBC.”

Another defended Phillip’s right to a private life and added: “The family of Phillip Schofield must be horrified by this witch hunt”.

One viewer joined Newswatch to air her concerns over the interview with Phillip and claimed other important news was being ignored in favour of the scandal.

Teresa Hughes stated: “I felt compelled to email because when the BBC News headlines on Sunday at 7 o’clock was the Phillip Schofield/Holly Willoughby story, for me that was positively tabloid-esq and not what I would expect from the BBC.

“There’s been a cover-up allegedly about PPE, there is a war in Europe, we are facing the biggest cost of living crisis in decades, people are struggling.

“And we are looking at Phillip and Holly, is there really an appetite for this?”

In a statement to Newswatch, the BBC commented: “Phillip Schofield is a prominent public figure and there have been high levels of interest in the story from our audience. The story has raised important issues of public interest, and we have followed developments in the story throughout the week – this included an interview with Phillip Schofield by Amol Rajan, which scrutinised his actions and reflected on the level and nature of media attention”.

Express.co.uk has contacted BBC for a comment.

BBC Breakfast airs daily from 6am on BBC One.

 

Read original article here

Denial of responsibility! Gamers Greade is an automatic aggregator of the all world’s media. In each content, the hyperlink to the primary source is specified. All trademarks belong to their rightful owners, all materials to their authors. If you are the owner of the content and do not want us to publish your materials, please contact us by email – [email protected]. The content will be deleted within 24 hours.

Leave A Reply

Your email address will not be published.