BBC needs to update its social media guidelines, says Ofcom chief

Melanie Dawes told MPs she thought the BBC director general had been ‘very effective’. Photograph: House of Commons/PA

The BBC needs to update its social media guidelines for the modern world, Ofcom’s chief executive has told MPs after the row over Gary Lineker’s tweets.

Although the corporation’s editorial guidelines are ultimately outside Ofcom’s remit, Dame Melanie Dawes, the regulator’s chief executive, said that the row cut to the heart of questions about its editorial independence.