BBC and Sky News forced to apologise over Dominic Cummings' explicit texts

31 October 2023 , 20:11

1146     0

BBC and Sky News forced to apologise over Dominic Cummings' explicit texts

The BBC and Sky were forced to make an apology after expletive-filled text messages sent by Dominic Cummings were aired.

Former political adviser Dominic Cummings was called to the coronavirus inquiry to answer a string of questions - and while he was being grilled, eyebrow raising messages that he had sent via WhatsApp in the midst of the UK government’s Covid response in 2020. Shocking messages were read aloud including one where 51-year-old Dom branded then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s cabinet “useless f***pigs”, and called other ministers “morons” and “c***s”.

Lead counsel Hugo Keith KC appeared shocked by the language and branded it “revolting” - while viewers tuning in to news provided by the BBC and Sky were left stunned as the expletive-heavy content was read out loud without censoring. Both broadcasters were forced to apologise repeatedly as more and more offensive words were read out loud.

The BBC argued the swear words needed to be aired due to a "clear public interest in reporting the inquiry's proceedings in full".

Dominic Cummings' old WhatsApp messages caused a stir during the Covid inquiry (FILE)

While reporters on air apologised for the coarse language, saying: "Just an apology to reiterate that there has been some very strong language, plenty of expletives, over the past couple of hours of coverage. This is as messages from those in between Number 10 were read out or have been read out, and that may well continue so apologies in advance, those are unedited and we don't get any warning of those."

Teachers, civil servants and train drivers walk out in biggest strike in decade

Sky News aired the same scenes, with a message on screens stating: "Warning: Offensive language". As proceedings for the day began, lead counsel Mr Hugo Keith told Dominic: "Due in large part to your own Whatsapps, Mr Cummings, we are going to have to coarsen our language somewhat" - to which the former special advisor offered an apology.

Mr Keith then continued, saying: "You called ministers useless f***pigs, morons, c***s, in email and Whatapps to your professional colleagues." And while Dominic confessed his language was "appalling", he argued he was: "reflecting a widespread view amongst competent people at the centre of power at the time about the calibre of a lot of senior people who were dealing with this crisis extremely badly."

BBC viewers were told: "Just a reminder we are watching live unedited coverage of the Covid inquiry… There is more repeated expletives that we are hearing." While over on Sky, reporters interrupted the live stream to apologise, saying: "we have no control over the language," and "We may be experiencing quite a lot of this today."

However, some viewers argued that the swear words being broadcast via the inquiry were not the worst thing that they were hearing on air. One viewer wrote on X: “BBC and sky, the swearing isn't the offensive part of this #CovidInquiryUK.”

Mirror.co.uk