The BBC has reportedly been plunged into a 'civil war' between management and talent after Gary Lineker was taken off air for comparing the Government's rhetoric around migrants to Nazi Germany in a tweet.
The split is over whether bosses should have apologised to the Match of the Day presenter following his reinstatement as host yesterday (March 13), Mail Online reports.
The former England striker will make his return to screens on Saturday when he fronts the BBC's live coverage of the FA Cup quarter final clash between Manchester City and Burnley. This follows a weekend jam-packed with withdrawals as fellow football pundits and presenters pulled out of their appearances on any of the broadcaster's shows in solidarity with Lineker.
Despite BBC director general Tim Davie insisting he took 'proportionate action' and had not backed down in the disagreement, many higher-ups in the national broadcaster are concerned that the reinstatement of Lineker could lead to a 'free for all' of on-screen personnel expressing more political opinions online, testing the BBC's impartiality rules in the process, The Telegraph reports.
Deputy chairman of the Conservative Party Lee Anderson has labelled the BBC's handling of the saga as "spineless". He said: "In football, no player is bigger than the club - but Lineker has shown he is bigger than the BBC."
A senior BBC source told The Telegraph: "One would hope he (Lineker) has heard and taken very carefully on board the damage that he has done. This has not come to an end but I think that Tim Davie has come through it so far in one piece. It has been a violent business."
However, some BBC staff are believed to have taken the BBC backing down and apology to Lineker as a "victory", and could signal management is eroding. An employee said: "The BBC blinked first. You can feel the power draining away."
Insiders have reportedly said there is now a 'huge rift' in the BBC Sport department, with some outraged by the way the debacle played out. BBC staff reportedly confronted director of sport Barbara Slater, during a series of "highly uncomfortable" meetings.
A snap poll seen by Sportsmail reportedly revealed little support for BBC bosses. The Mail says a poll, presented to Barbara Slater, showed 80 per cent of respondents rate senior management zero out of five for their handling of the crisis.
Staff were reportdly "left in the dark until the last minute" over whether Match of the Day and other shows would go ahead. However, Mail Online reports that there was also anger directed at Gary Lineker. Some were said to have asked if if he and other pundits were aware of the effect of their actions on staff.
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