[arista]

[This week, I took a phone call.
'Jon,' said the BBC's Head
of Awkward Conversations,
'That show you do on Radio 4?
The Now Show?'
'Yes,' I said, tentatively,
because phone calls like
this never end well.
'It's back on air in November.'
I already knew this, because
I had been asked to block
it out in my diary at the
end of the last series.
But now I was Having.
An. Awkward. Conversation.

'I'll get straight to the point,
' she continued. 'I'm afraid for the
next series, we're not inviting you back.
We're recasting it with more
women and diversity.'

And just like that, after 18 years
on the long-running show, I was out.
And that's fair enough. I'm not
here to complain about it.
Eighteen years is a pretty good innings.]

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...#ixzz4Lucr5m1t


This stinks
he (Jon Holmes) is one
of the writers
of the that show , as well.

[Ammi]

....hmmm I have to say that I'm extremely sceptical about this story...'we want to recast you with more women and diversity', 'positive discrimination' 'we can't have you because you're too white and too middle class'...your perfect for the job but you're not Asian...you would have to be the dumbest of the most dumb of employers to say things in that vein to an employee and this is the BBC../really..?...an employer would never leave themselves so wide open to being sued/for legal action against them for discrimination and I just can't imagine representatives of the BBC saying anything like...

[Ammi]

...you don't even question this... the logic of it, Arista..you're just accepting it as truth..?..

[Crimson Dynamo]

WLM

[Cherie]

Interesting as the wonderful Peter Allen has been replaced (he moves to a weekend show with Jane Garvey) by a woman on 5 live daily whose name I can't remember, and the afternoon edition is now co hosted by Nihal Arthanayake and Sarah Brett so there may be some truth to it as these are recent changes

[arista]

Originally Posted by Ammi

...you don't even question this... the logic of it, Arista..you're just accepting it as truth..?..

Yes as he is not old.

And of course the Female Producer
would never outright say its because
he is a Male and White.

[arista]

Originally Posted by Cherie

Interesting as the wonderful Peter Allen has been replaced (he moves to a weekend show with Jane Garvey) by a woman on 5 live daily whose name I can't remember, and the afternoon edition is now co hosted by Nihal Arthanayake and Sarah Brett so there may be some truth to it as these are recent changes

Yes the BBC
is fecking it all up.

[Ammi]

Originally Posted by arista

Yes as he is not old.

And of course the Female Producer
would never outright say its because
he is a Male and White.

...he may not be old but he may be 'stale' in his job and just not appeal to the present audience as he did in his early days...

[Cherie]

Originally Posted by arista

Yes the BBC
is fecking it all up.

I quite like him and they work well together that said they need to give the work to the best person for the job not dole it out on a diversity basis.

[kirklancaster]

I do not know the truth behind this 'sacking' - who does but the principals? - but just like there are some cases where black people definitely raise the 'racism' flag aloft as an excuse for them being sacked for some breach which they ARE guilty of committing, or turned down for jobs when they were simply NOT the most suitable or best qualified applicant, or when they have been arrested for a crime which they DID commit, then there are also some WHITE people who will hold that same flag aloft in similar circumstances.

But then again, there ARE actual cases when someone HAS suffered purely because of their COLOUR or RACE but other excuses are made by those imposing the suffering simply to try to justify their actions and disguise the UNACCEPTABLE real reasons.

So - who knows?

[Tom4784]

I don't buy it at all, it sounds like sour grapes from him and Daily Mail have run with it because it's guaranteed to piss off their readers who are scared of anyone who isn't white and thinks that the word 'Diversity' is the devil.

BBC would risk a damaging lawsuit that could cost them millions if they sacked anyone because of their race or gender, it's not the reason why he was sacked and it's naive to believe it is.

[MB.]

Let's hear from the man himself, shall we?

Well, that clears that one up. Let's move on

[Ammi]

Originally Posted by Dezzy

I don't buy it at all, it sounds like sour grapes from him and Daily Mail have run with it because it's guaranteed to piss off their readers who are scared of anyone who isn't white and thinks that the word 'Diversity' is the devil.

BBC would risk a damaging lawsuit that could cost them millions if they sacked anyone because of their race or gender, it's not the reason why he was sacked and it's naive to believe it is.

..yeah these are my thoughts as well, it just seems such a dumb thing to leave themselves open the way that it's suggesting and not something that a company like the BBC would do...maybe just an 'assumption' that those who have lost their jobs are making because the BBC are trying to show diversity as well but the two things not being connected...it's just 'hearsay' atm really with those who do possibly have a grievance.../sad at the job losses though...

[Northern Monkey]

Originally Posted by MB.

Let's hear from the man himself, shall we?

Well, that clears that one up. Let's move on

No the newspaper headline is obvs not a quote but he tweeted himself what they actually said to him 'we want to recast with more women and diversity' which is disgraceful tbh.Sacking because they don't want somebody who is white and male.

[arista]

Originally Posted by Ammi

...he may not be old but he may be 'stale' in his job and just not appeal to the present audience as he did in his early days...

no I think he is very funny.

[arista]

Being debated now on LBC now

By a Asian presenter
he says its Wrong

[arista]

Of Course Jon Holmes
did not make the DM heading

But its the Truth.


Yes Dezzy the DM has their own
fights with the BBC.
But Jon was sacked because of
this is new BBC policy
that is Fecking it all UP

[arista]

Jon Holmes with his wife Nicki

[Tom4784]

Unless his claims can be proved then it's silly to take them as fact. You cannot sack someone based on race or gender and no real company would be dumb enough to do so because of the inevitable ****storm that would come from it.

This is basically a case of people DESPERATELY wanting this to be true because they consider Diversity to be a dirty word. Look at it from a non-biased perspective and common sense wins out.

[the truth]

Originally Posted by Ammi

...he may not be old but he may be 'stale' in his job and just not appeal to the present audience as he did in his early days...

his listening figures havent dropped........people on the bbc use the expression to many middle aged white men all the time and its allowed to pass, so too do politicians so clearly this anti white man racism is now rife and allowed to pass....absolutely disgusting racism. he should take legal action, to hell with taking this racism on the chin

[arista]

"inevitable ****storm that would come from it."


yes on LBC radio it has started
today Dezzy.

[Cherie]

Originally Posted by Dezzy

Unless his claims can be proved then it's silly to take them as fact. You cannot sack someone based on race or gender and no real company would be dumb enough to do so because of the inevitable ****storm that would come from it.

This is basically a case of people DESPERATELY wanting this to be true because they consider Diversity to be a dirty word. Look at it from a non-biased perspective and common sense wins out.

Common sense is putting the right people in the right jobs, desperation is diversity just as a box ticking exercise

[Ammi]

‘We’d like to thank both Jon Holmes and Mitch Benn for their contributions, but – as we explained almost a week ago when the story first appeared in newspapers – our comedy shows are constantly evolving and it was simply time to create opportunities for new regulars when The Now Show returns this autumn.
‘We will be hiring the new cast for the Now Show based on merit. Jon’s contract was lapsed and wasn’t renewed and this was a creative not a diversity decision, as we have clearly said.’



...I think it's always sad with things like this, when someone loses an income from something they've been doing for many years and something that is faced by many people when contracts are reviewed at periods as in this case/no guarantees as such...but it looks as though his show with him presenting just didn't offer what the BBC were looking for in the direction they plan to go and inevitably it was the right person for the right job...

[Northern Monkey]

Originally Posted by Ammi

‘We’d like to thank both Jon Holmes and Mitch Benn for their contributions, but – as we explained almost a week ago when the story first appeared in newspapers – our comedy shows are constantly evolving and it was simply time to create opportunities for new regulars when The Now Show returns this autumn.
‘We will be hiring the new cast for the Now Show based on merit. Jon’s contract was lapsed and wasn’t renewed and this was a creative not a diversity decision, as we have clearly said.’



...I think it's always sad with things like this, when someone loses an income from something they've been doing for many years and something that is faced by many people when contracts are reviewed at periods as in this case/no guarantees as such...but it looks as though his show with him presenting just didn't offer what the BBC were looking for in the direction they plan to go and inevitably it was the right person for the right job...

So they told him what they were planning and then backtracked when they got caught out.Be interesting to see what race his replacement is and if it's a woman...

[arista]

Originally Posted by Northern Monkey

So they told him what they were planning and then backtracked when they got caught out.Be interesting to see what race his replacement is and if it's a woman...

Yes BBC Pathetic