Entertainment
BBC ‘calls in police over threats made against Naga Munchetty’ after flag-gate row
The BBC reportedly spoke to the police about threats made against Naga Munchetty following the row over Housing Minister Robert Jenrick’s flag.
Naga and her BBC Breakfast co-host Charlie Stayt found themselves in hot water after joking about the government minister’s huge Union Flag when he appeared on the show last month.
As the interview came to an end, Charlie thanked Mr Jenrick for his time, before quipping: ‘I think your flag is not up to standard size government interview measurements.’
‘I think it’s just a little small, but that’s your department, really,’ the newsreader added, as Mr Jenrick smiled awkwardly.
Naga could be heard laughing in the background, before the camera panned back to the BBC Breakfast studio to show her covering her mouth while chuckling over what Charlie had just said.
While some fans found it hilarious, others weren’t impressed, with the BBC receiving complaints and Naga being forced to apologise on Twitter for liking ‘offensive’ tweets about the moment.
Private Eye has now reported that more than 6,000 complaints were filed with the BBC, with many of them targeted at Naga.
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According to the publication, four were threatening in nature and were reported to the BBC’s security and investigations team and the police are now involved.
Many of the other complaints were judged to show ‘overt racism/misogyny’ while 70 were deemed to be ‘abusive’.
The BBC has not officially confirmed the amount of complaints directed at Naga and Charlie, but issued a response to them.
‘We received complaints from people unhappy with a comment Charlie Stayt made about the flag in the background of an interview and Naga Munchetty’s subsequent activity on social media,’ it read.
‘At the end of a long, serious interview with the Housing, Communities and Local Government Secretary Robert Jenrick, Charlie Stayt made an off the cuff remark about the size of the flag behind Mr Jenrick.
‘It was meant as a light-hearted, off the cuff comment and no offence or disrespect was intended. Naga and Charlie have been spoken to and reminded of their responsibilities, including the BBC’s impartiality and social media guidelines.’
Naga also apologised for ‘liking’ tweets about the joke, writing on Twitter: ‘I “liked” tweets today that were offensive in nature about the use of the British flag as a backdrop in a government interview this morning.
‘I have since removed these ‘likes’. This do not represent the views of me or the BBC. I apologise for any offence taken. Naga.’
BBC newsreader Huw Edwards later mocked the situation, sharing a snap of himself in front of a Welsh flag.
Just two hours later, he revealed he’d had to delete the tweet ‘by order’, cheekily replacing it with a picture of the BBC flag.
The BBC declined to comment when contacted by Metro.co.uk.
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