Tim Davie facing revolt over transgender Pride network ‘policing’ the … – The Telegraph

Tim Davie is facing a revolt as he is accused of letting the transgender Pride network “police” the BBC.

The BBC director general has been told by staff to “shut down” the corporation’s Pride networks after a co-chair complained he wanted more influence over stories. 

Mr Davie has been accused by insiders of “incredible naivety” for letting the BBC Pride and BBC Studios Pride networks expand among hundreds of staff, backing trans activism. 

The Telegraph understands that staff have raised concerns directly to his office.

The latest trans row to hit the broadcaster began with a testy exchange between Nathan Wren, BBC Studios Pride’s co-chair, and Malcolm Clark, a science producer, at the World Congress of Science & Factual Producers last month. 

Mr Clark claims he complained that the group “policed” BBC output and stifled debate, prompting Mr Wren to reply: “We only intervene, when, say, a trans subject is being covered and then we’ll press to ensure trans voices are being heard.”

Mr Clark said when he pointed out that even unions would not wish to have such editorial influence, Mr Wren replied: “We often ask for changes and they don’t happen.”

Now, the Telegraph can reveal that some staff are calling for a crackdown on the group, accusing it of being “homophobic” by eroding the sanctity of binary, immutable biological sex by promoting self-identified genders, thus undermining same-sex attracted people. 

“Many staff are fed up with the way BBC Pride’s influence undermines the BBC’s reputation for impartiality – Tim Davie needs to shut Pride down now before its influence undermines the BBC further,” one BBC insider said. 

The growing influence of the BBC Pride networks has been partly blamed as a hangover from the BBC’s long-standing ties with Stonewall, the contentious LGBT charity.

In a report in 2018 on LGBTQ+ culture and progression, the BBC heaped praise on Stonewall and one of ten recommendations was for BBC Pride to be “strengthened”.

The report was part-written by Phil Harrold, the chief of staff to the director-general and chairman, who is also the “executive sponsor of the BBC Pride staff network”.

Such emboldening was evident in June 2021, when leaked minutes of BBC Pride’s board showed they were demanding to “attend commissioning meetings” and play a role in “editorial processes” on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.

This escalated in what was reportedly a tense video call between Fran Unsworth, the former director of BBC News, and BBC Pride’s board in November 2021, when the BBC quit Stonewall diversity training.

Members of BBC Pride were “disappointed and frustrated” but Ms Unsworth was said to have told staff “you’ll hear things you don’t personally like… and you have to get used to that”. 

Following the latest row over BBC Studios Pride chiefs suggesting they want more influence, a BBC insider said: “Pride believes the rights of transwomen are more important than the rights of women to single-sex spaces and sports.

“BBC senior management have been incredibly naive not to understand the political nature of gender identity activism and the way it’s been tacked onto gay rights.

‘It’s all about trans, not LGB’

“People seem to think Tim is aware of the issue, but every complaint has to go through the Pride sponsor Phil Harrold, because he also runs Tim’s office.”

The insider claimed BBC Sport reporters were told to refer to the transwoman athlete Laurel Hubbard as a woman in the Tokyo 2021 Olympics, as an example of the effects. 

A second BBC source said: “It’s intimidating, how much power the Pride group has on trans activist issues and there’s no one to stop them or put the counter case. 

“Editors don’t want to do anything to offend internal activists because they’re afraid of the inevitable argument and internal complaints that would follow. Even if they know they made the correct editorial decision. It’s all about trans, not LGB.”

A BBC spokesman said: “BBC Pride is a volunteer-led staff network which aims to support all LGBTQ+ staff. It is not an editorial team, has no role in directing editorial content and like the Telegraph Group’s ‘Out Loud’ LGBTQ+ network, our staff networks help ensure the BBC is an inclusive organisation.

“Editorial decisions about what the BBC broadcasts or publishes are made in accordance with our editorial values and standards, including our commitment to due impartiality.”