Get all your news in one place.
100's of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Business
Mark Sweney

Will Gary Lineker get a red card from the BBC over his tweets? Probably not

gary lineker pictured next to the FA Cup
Gary Lineker could disappear from the BBC tomorrow and still have a very lucrative career, says the PR expert Mark Borkowski. Photograph: Dave Shopland/Rex/Shutterstock

Gary Lineker may have famously managed to avoid being carded for foul play during a 16-year professional football career, but the latest politically loaded social media salvo from the BBC’s highest-paid presenter has the corporation’s director general seeing red.

Tim Davie, who may now be rueing the £6.75m deal to keep the former England star at the BBC until 2025 that was announced two weeks after he took over running the corporation, has made it his mission to rebuild a “fragile trust” with government by reining in perceived partiality on and off screen. To that end, an ultra-strict social media policy is now in force for news staff.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100's of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.