Sue Barker and ‘diversity’

[StillCoughingandLaughing]

Sue Barker (plus team captains Phil Tufnell and Matt Dawson) has been axed from A Question of Sport:

www.mirror.co.uk/tv/tv-news/fuming-question-sport-fans-demand-22686408

Reports are speculating that this is down to a drive to increase diversity in the presenting team. I should emphasise that, while Barker has confirmed she was axed, the BBC has NOT confirmed the reason - I’m not claiming this is gospel.

However, if this is part of a diversity drive, isn’t the BBC a) swapping one kind of inequality for another and b) shooting itself in the foot? The BBC has regularly been accused of sexism and ageism, and notably a combination of the two (remember Arlene Phillips?) Sue Barker is a 64 year-old woman with genuine credentials to present this show, as well as a wealth of experience. How many other high-profile female sports presenters aged 50 or older can you name? Because I can’t name one. Surely there’s little point in diversifying if you have to become less diverse to do so?

To me, this is a major misstep by the BBC. An older, highly experienced woman in a high profile role, who got the job based on credentials and not as window dressing, was a genuine asset. Why drop her to tick another box?

The shake up is because the show is stale and is partly to address the issues in the article below but don’t let that stop you from creating a thread with the sole intention of working known bigots like Zombiefan into an orgasmic frenzy.

They love a made up diversity story especially if it involves the BBC. I’d love to know which programmes are fronted by BAME disabled transwomen, let alone all of them and am also wondering why a show fronted by people with those characteristics would be a problem?

www.theguardian.com/media/2020/sep/15/more-of-less-the-dilemma-facing-tim-davie-at-the-bbc

Genuinely sick to death of you weirdo ‘great replacement’ fantasists who offer nothing productive to advance humanity, you just want to stir trouble in order to ignite your longed for race war.

Pandering to your delusions is why we have the populist government we do, why we have the highest Covid death toll in Europe and why your no deal Brexit will destroy our fragile economy.

We should’ve learned the lessons from history and just squashed on your ‘concerns’ which weren’t really concerns but a wish for everyone who wasn’t like you to disappear. This is why you contort yourselves into a paranoid fantasy believing that one white person who’s fronted a programme long enough to have paid her mortgage several times over and is leaving a show must be the result of some nefarious diversity agenda to replace all straight whites.

We must learn that you cannot appease racists, homophobes and disablists. You cannot reason with them, they are danger to liberal democracy. They prey on the dim last place avoiders by creating false controversies like this one.

I would have thought an older woman presenting a show about sport IS pretty diverse - not the expected demographic at any rate.

I wish the bbc would just be open about why and not make everything about diversity. I hadn't realised it was even still going. It has been at least 15years since I watched it! I'm sure it will becajse viewing figures have dropped of a cliff and they need to revive it.

She’s been on the programme for 24 years! Why shouldn’t she be replaced after so long? Are people advocating jobs for life or something?

As far as “diversity” given that Britain’s most famous sportspeople include a huge number of BAME stars this hardly seems unreasonable to hire someone from that background. Or are black people good enough to run and play football but not to host BBC shows?

It's entertainment at the end of the day. Not big business...if you're in the entertainment business, then this is part and parcel of it.

She's pale and stale.
Time to go.

@Tellmetruth4

Genuinely sick to death of you weirdo ‘great replacement’ fantasists who offer nothing productive to advance humanity, you just want to stir trouble in order to ignite your longed for race war.

Pandering to your delusions is why we have the populist government we do, why we have the highest Covid death toll in Europe and why your no deal Brexit will destroy our fragile economy.

We should’ve learned the lessons from history and just squashed on your ‘concerns’ which weren’t really concerns but a wish for everyone who wasn’t like you to disappear. This is why you contort yourselves into a paranoid fantasy believing that one white person who’s fronted a programme long enough to have paid her mortgage several times over and is leaving a show must be the result of some nefarious diversity agenda to replace all straight whites.

We must learn that you cannot appease racists, homophobes and disablists. You cannot reason with them, they are danger to liberal democracy. They prey on the dim last place avoiders by creating false controversies like this one.

I’m not a religious woman but amen to that!

The BBC did this with other shows. Got rid of the charismatic presenters who bounced off each other, all replaced in what was overwhelmingly evidently a diversity drive. Result: said shows are now dull as dish water, unwatchable. Why? Why fix something if it’s not broken? If the presenters were perfect for the job in the first place why replace them with people who don’t have the same spark? People earned those jobs, now they are losing them.

Was anyone still watching it? It's been the same for 23 years. Must be desperate for a relaunch.

For decades white women have wanted equality with men. Now they're starting to get you don't want to share it with women of colour like me - thanks guys!

@galgaf12

She's pale and stale. Time to go.

Let me rephrase that for you she is a woman in her 60s. I don't think I have heard a man be described in these terms.

When we speak about diversity, that includes the protected characteristics of age and sex.

The BBC did this with other shows. Got rid of the charismatic presenters who bounced off each other, all replaced in what was overwhelmingly evidently a diversity drive. Result: said shows are now dull as dish water, unwatchable.

Jesus. Even if this is a real thing, as various people have said upthread, have you actually seen 'A Question of Sport' in the last ten years? This isn't rhetorical, if you give a shit about this issue, go and find a recent episode on iplayer. It's charmless, stale and unfunny to the point of being unwatchable. it's a zombie show that either needs a complete refresh or putting out of its misery.

Galgaf12 - if they replace her with a woman of colour I think it will be great. But the problem is that I doubt they will.

It is more likely she will be replaced by a younger man which is truly rubbish.

AskDab

I got that phrase from the feminist board.

Google stale pale and male

I suspect that they agreed between them to all quit rather than 1 or 2 replaced. It's been 12 years since a change, probably time

Definitely one of those shows you see on the planner and think "Huh, that's still on". I like Sue Barker, but the show is well overdue for a revamp.

I'm trying to think of other presenters on the BBC who've held their roles as long - Merton and Hislop on HIGNFY are all I'm coming up with. I'm sure there must be others, but probably not many.

I think Sue Barker has been brilliant in her role but the whole show may be overhauled in order to attract newer viewers (get that for a poem). I agree with those who say it was quite 'diverse' to have a woman and, latterly, an 'older' woman in the role but all good things come to an end. I expect she was handsomely paid off and will have other work, just not the regular gig. I like her very much and wish her all the best.

My vote goes to Nicola Adams, lovely young woman, sharp with a lot of personality and sense of humour but, hey, the BBC are not going to take any notice of me.

(Someone mentioned Arlene Phillips earlier; no comparison between her and Sue Barker, Arlene was an absolute rude bitch, nothing to do with her age.)

Arlene was an absolute rude bitch

Bit misogynistic

What about Moira Stewart? I think that was definitely to do with her age.

A Question of Sport is awful. My 81 yo dad loves it, says it all really. I suspect they're making it more mad-cap, like Keith Lemon.

@Tellmetruth4 I'm glad someone finally made the link between Brexit, Covid, and Sue Barker losing her job as host of Question of Sport. Just possibly, a contributing factor to UK having the highest Covid death toll in Europe is that it has the third largest population, after Germany and Russia. On a deaths per million basis, it's fifth.

There have been allegations about agism, particularly involving female presenters, aimed at the BBC before.

I think Miriam O'Reilly won her tribunal against the BBC when she was sacked from Countryfile. Other presenters have said the same thing.