(This post may have no interest for any readers who are not resident in the UK.)

The BBC has some very good news presenters and journalists on its 24-hour programme BBC News 24. One of my favourites is the lively Martine Croxall, a lady who presents a very human face when reading the news, or appearing on longer news and political presentations.

As far as I am concerned, she is an assest to the BBC, and we could do with more like her, and far fewer of the po-faced, self-important news presenters who think they are the focus of the news, not the stories.

When Boris Johnson announced that he was to run again recently for election to the leadership of the Conservative Party, that was greeted with derison my many journalists, and generated dire warnings from others. So when he announced his withdrawal from the contest at the last minute, that came as a relief to almost everyone in this country.

Including, it would seem, the excellent Martine Croxall. Here is her very human reaction to that news.

However, following her obvious smiles and use of the word ‘gleeful’, complaints flooded in. She was accused of showing bias against Boris Johnson, and breaking the rules of ‘impartiality’ that supposedly exist at the BBC. She was then removed from her job as a newspreader and presenter, and her fate is as yet unknown.

This is worrying to me, as other presenters are blatantly biased and impartial but all of those are still working. Not least the pro-Conservative Fiona Bruce, who uses her role as presenter of the high-profile BBC1 show ‘Question Time’ every week to allow right-wing guests to say anything they like without interruption, then shuts down any argument against them in seconds. Fiona is married to an advertising executive whose company received almost £4,000,000 to advertise Conservative Government Policy.

That’s an easy jigsaw to put into place. A 3 year-old could do it.

Fiona Bruce’s current salary from the BBC is over £409,000 a year. This includes her salary for presenting the TV programme ‘Antiques Roadshow’.
Martine Croxall’s salary was estimated to be around £100,000 a year.

I know who I would sooner watch.