The BBC just got a wake-up call it desperately needed. Deadline recently reported on a major study commissioned by the broadcaster itself urges a retreat from the color-blind casting tokenism and preachy storylines about the UKs colonial history that have been plaguing its scripted series. Finally some common sense breaking through the woke fog at Auntie Beeb.
Conducted by former BAFTA chair Anne Morrison and ex-Ofcom executive Chris Banatvala, this 80-page thematic review of portrayal and representation exposed how clunky depictions of race often do more harm than good. Audiences are fed up, and rightfully so. Complaints poured in over Doctor Who casting Nathaniel Curtis as Sir Isaac Newton in the 60th anniversary special Wild Blue Yonder. The same backlash hit the 2023 Agatha Christie series Murder Is Easy, which shoehorned in an allegory on colonialism nobody asked for.
The report doesnt mince words on color-blind casting. It warns commissioners to consider their choices carefully because good intentions to increase diversity can lead to inauthentic outcomes, outcomes that can sometimes be damaging to the communities they are attempting to serve. In depicting an anachronistic historical world in which people of colour are able to rise to the top of society as scientists, artists, courtiers and Lords of the Realm, there may be the unintended consequence of erasing the past exclusion and oppression of ethnic minorities and breeding complacency about their former opportunities. What needs to be avoided is ethnic diversity which looks forced and tick box, and we found our interviewees of colour as emphatic on this point as those who were white.
The BBCs current obsession with sprinkling diversity into every program comes under fire too. Measuring representation show-by-show leads to a sense that there needs to be a smattering of diversity in every programme which can lead to inauthentic portrayal. In some cases, this can look clunky, particularly in scripted. Even Doctor Who gets a half-hearted defense for its mixed-race Newton, noting that a mixed-race Newton seems much less of a stretch in a universe in which the central character is a time-travelling extra-terrestrial. But the broader point stands: forced diversity alienates viewers.
Take Murder Is Easy, starring David Jonsson. Audiences are particularly unforgiving of this if it challenges their expectations of what they have switched on to see. If theres an Agatha Christie murder mystery over the Christmas period, they wont expect to be taken into anti-colonial struggles, alongside the country-house murder. Unless its very skilfully done, there is a danger it will feel overly didactic and preachy, as if the viewer is being lectured or a point is being made heavy-handedly. Jonsson himself admitted reluctance to take the role because hes not a big fan of colour-blind casting. Director Meenu Gaur even revealed an allegorical story about colonialism from West African Yoruba culture shaped the opening credits.
This isnt just elite opinion. The review drew from a survey of 4,518 UK adults, interviews with 100 BBC employees and observers, and a years worth of content analysis through March 2024. Yonder Consulting, handling audience research, nailed it: In terms of what made for poor representation across the media landscape, participants across the breadth of the qualitative sample highlighted tokenistic representation of minority groups or perceived quotafilling, in which attempts to represent felt incongruous, overdone or unnecessary. When on-screen diversity misses the mark, it could drive people away from the BBC. Representation alone was not enough, people also expected deep and nuanced portrayal.
The BBC claims that it welcomes the findings and will systematically review upcoming content plans to ensure underrepresented audience groups are reflected authentically. Chief content officer Kate Phillips admits much has been achieved, but what is also clear is there is still more to do. BBC chair Samir Shah insists decision-making must happen closer to audience desires if they want to ensure that everyone feels represented.
Translation: The great feminization of entertainment hit the BBC hard, prioritizing feelings and quotas over storytelling and truth. Audiences tuning in for escapism get lectures instead, and now even the BBCs own research admits its killing the vibe. Time to dial back the woke engineering and let creators make content people actually want to watch. Let’s see if they take it seriously or not. The license fee payers will thank them if they do.
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