Gabi Logan has revealed she is ‘careful’ about what she posts online after Gary Lineker came under fire for his anti-conservative tweets.
The BBC Sport presenter, 49, said anyone working for the broadcaster should be “careful” about what they say and what the “ramifications” might be.
Her comments come after Gary, 62, was temporarily taken off the air after sharing a tweet of comparison Government language about immigration to Nazi Germany.
Speaking on the issue of neutrality, Gabe L. said: Daily Star: You must be careful in the way you express yourself, thinking about what I’m saying.
“Like everyone else who works for the BBC, I am thinking about the repercussions that will be there.”
Integrity: Gabby Logan has revealed she is ‘careful’ about what she posts online after Gary Lineker came under fire for his anti-conservative tweets.
Row: Her comments came after Gary, 62, was paused from broadcasting after sharing a tweet comparing government language on immigration to Nazi Germany.
Gabby went on to say that sports critic Gary said a lot of “terrible things” to him on Twitter when she warned against getting into discussions with “faceless people” online.
She added, “Sometimes it’s easier not to say things on Twitter, because you’re getting into a discussion with faceless people you don’t know.”
After Gary was suspended on Twitter following his tweets, a group of BBC Sport presenters refused to go live in solidarity and Match of the Day was forced to run without hosts.
Stars such as Ian Wright and Alan Shearer pulled out of a planned appearance on the BBC in support of Gary after he was temporarily axed by the company.
Radio 5’s live programmes, including 606 call-ins and a build-up to Saturday and Sunday matches, were also cancelled.
But Gabby continued to front cover the Six Nations and has now said she was not concerned with the situation in the football department that day.
Gary has plunged the BBC into a ‘civil war’ between talent and management over whether bosses were right to apologize to Match of the Day star for taking him off the air.
He caused chaos at the BBC when he was asked to back off presenting Match of the Day after a backlash over a tweet that compared the government’s crackdown on immigrants to Nazi Germany.
Debate: The BBC Sport presenter, 49, says anyone working for the broadcaster should be ‘careful’ about what they say and what the ‘ramifications’ might be
His agent has since claimed it He had a “special agreement” with BBC Director-General Tim Davie to tweet about immigrants and immigration.
John Holmes, who has worked with Gary for more than 40 years, said he has a “passionate interest” in the topic and believes he has been given permission to tweet about the issue.
He also revealed how he had been summoned to Broadcasting House, the BBC’s headquarters in central London, on Friday as part of efforts to resolve the situation.
John, the former Leicester City chairman, told the New Statesman: “Gary cares deeply about refugees and, as he saw it, had a special agreement with Tim Davie, the BBC’s managing director, to tweet about these issues.”
He added, “But when they asked me how the matter could be resolved, I told them that removing my neighbor from the air would not be helpful, and we have to clarify the instructions.”
Gary has since returned to the air after sparring over neutrality with Tim Davie saying he took ‘proportionate action’ over the tweet and insisting he did not back down in the row.
“Everyone understands that this has been a difficult period for the staff, shareholders, presenters and, most importantly, our audience,” Tim said. “I apologize for this.”
Gary later He tweeted, “After a surreal few days, I’m glad we managed to work our way through this.
I would like to thank all of you for the wonderful support, and in particular my colleagues at BBC Sport, for the wonderful show of solidarity.
“Football is a team game but their support has been overwhelming.”
Unfazed by the events, Gary also changes the image on his Twitter profile to a photoshopped image of himself in front of a George Orwell quote on freedom of speech.
However, the BBC’s former director-general, Lord Burt, told MPs this week that Gary had “clearly” breached company guidelines with his anti-Conservative tweets.
Controversy: After Gary commented on his tweets, a group of BBC Sport presenters refused to go live in solidarity and Match of the Day was forced to run without hosts
Lord Burt, who managed the broadcaster between 1992 and 2000, said the star’s statements were “exaggerated”.
Speaking before a special hearing of the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee, the fellow said: “The guidelines are very clear… they cover this situation clearly and obviously the expectation is that people like Gary have to comply with the rules and he hasn’t.”
When asked if it was right for the BBC to take action over a social media post, he replied: “It’s certainly appropriate that we call it out and say what it is.”
The BBC said it was commissioning an independent review of its social media guidelines, particularly for freelancers, but this could take months.
