The BBC has been slammed for “putting their presenters on a pedestal” after the broadcaster was forced to fire one of its biggest TV anchors.
Jermaine Jenas has left the company following an “internal investigation” based on a complaint of “inappropriate behaviour”.
Breaking his silence, Jenas told TalkSPORT that there are “two sides” to the story and currently “can’t talk about it”.
Jenas told the radio presenter: “I can’t talk about it right now. I can’t talk about those things [how I feel] right now. Like I said, There are two sides to this whole thing. My lawyers are going to be taking over from now on.”
Jermaine Jenas has been fired from the BBC after a complaint of ‘inappropriate behaviour’
PA
Discussing the latest scandal for the broadcaster, former correspondent Danny Shaw called for a “reset” of the “culture at the BBC”, as there appears to be a “distance” between those high up in the organisation and its stars.
Shaw explained: “I’ve seen examples before when the BBC circles the wagons to try to protect its reputation. That is one issue.
“It has an issue with presenters, celebrities, correspondents – puts them on a pedestal and pays them huge amounts of money. And that creates some cultural issues in the organisation. And that creates a distance between them and some of the other members of staff.”
Noting the complaint against Jenas, Shaw claimed that members of staff who are not high profile “should be able to feel that they can raise complaints against these people”.
The former BBC presenter has claimed there are ‘two sides to every story’ in a statement
PA
Shaw told GB News: “I think what is needed is a reset to understand so that everyone understands what’s expected of them.
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“If they’re one of these high profile individuals that’s paid a huge amount of money, the standards that are expected, make it clear to other staff that they can raise complaints about people, no matter how powerful or no matter how high profile.”
Noting his personal experience at the broadcaster, Shaw suggested that complaints can take “quite a long time” to process.
Shaw said: “From my experience at the BBC, and I was there as an employee for 31 years, they tend to take quite a long time after they’ve received allegations or after they’ve received complaints.
“There’s a process that has to be gone through and quite exhaustive internal process.”
Former BBC Correspondent Danny Shaw urged the BBC to ‘stop putting stars on a pedestal’
GB News
In a brief statement, A BBC spokesperson said: “We can confirm that he is no longer part of our presenting lineup.”
A source has told The Sun: “A complaint was raised concerning Jermaine’s behaviour. After some immediate routine enquiries, the decision was taken to take him off air and terminate his contract.
“At present, the feeling is he won’t be back on the BBC.”
It appears Jenas’s agency, MC Saatchi, has also dropped the presenter after he disappeared from their website.
