Tourette's activist at the centre of BAFTA N-word row hits out at BBC response
The BBC 'broke editorial standards' by broadcasting John Davidson's racial slur, but the Tourette's activist says the corporation didn't apologise to him directly.
The Tourette's activist at the centre of a BAFTA racial slur row has criticised the BBC's response, saying it compounded his "stress and upset."
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John Davidson faced backlash after he was heard shouting the N-word while black actors Michael B. Jordan and Delroy Lindon were on stage during the BAFTA awards ceremony. The broadcast was prerecorded and an investigation found yesterday that the BBC broke their editorial guidelines by failing to edit the slur out.
The BBC has apologised for the incident, but Mr Davidson hit out at the corporation today for not reaching out to him directly. "I have only had a written apology passed on to me by a third party. That says it all really, does it not?"
In the wake of Mr Dawson's comments, a BBC Spokesperson told LBC: “The BBC was keen to get our apology to Mr Davidson as quickly as possible following the BAFTA’s.
"Unfortunately, we did not have contact details for Mr Davidson so we asked a mutual contact to pass our letter on.”
A film about Mr Davidson's life was being celebrated at the BAFTAs. "I Swear" won several awards, including leading actor for Robert Aramayo's portrayal of the activist. Later in the evening, Aramayo defended Davison, saying: "first of all, the tics are tics. He is ticking. We have to understand."
Mr Davidson was left "mortified" by the incident and told the Daily Record "the stress and upset I have had to endure has been shocking."
Read more: BBC broke editorial standards by airing BAFTAs racial slur, review finds
Since the incident Mr Davidson has questioned why more wasn't done to prevent any outbursts being broadcast. "There was a microphone right in front of me, and with hindsight I have to questions whether this was wise, so close to where I was seated, knowing I would tic."
Mr Davidson told Variety he said at least 10 different offensive words during the ceremony, including calling host Alan Cumming a "paedophile" after he joked about Paddington Bear.
Alan Cumming apologised during the programme to anyone offended by the outbursts, before adding "Tourette's syndrome is a disability and the tics you have heard tonight are involuntary."
The BBC was also accused of breaching editorial standards by editing our award-winner Akinola Davies Jr's declaration of "free Palestine" during his acceptance speech. In the wake of the ceremony, Alan Cumming criticised the BBC for "broadcasting slurs and censoring free speech."
The investigation into the BBC found the editorial breach regarding the slur was unintentional, but the actor, who has produced multiple documentaries with the BBC, said he expected them to have "worked harder" to protect against such incidents.
In the aftermath of the broadcast Davidson said, "I have spent my life trying to support and empower the Tourette's community and to teach empathy, kindness and understanding from other and I will continue to do so."