James Harding leaving BBC News in New Year

To some extent, I see what you're saying. Giving equal opprtunity to those who just flat out deny something exists based on no evidence at all, and those who have actual evidence to go on and come to a conclusion, is not fair or balanced. Ignorance, whether malicious or through lack of understanding, should never be put on the same level with evidence based analysis. But that happens far too often.

Where differing opinions exist based on the actual evidence, they should be given equal weight and equal time, but trying to equate evidence with denial is no balance at all. That doesn't mean you shouldn't report the deniers, but you shouldn't be giving them the same level of credibility.

I don't think you can lump Brexit and Climate Change into the same discussion.

Climate Change discussions should be framed around the scientific consensus. If you have credible scientists who disagree on the science, make sure audiences are aware that they are a minority. It gets much more difficult when you just put up an out-and-out denier with no credible qualifications or authority on the subject other than being 'well known'.

Same goes for Antivaxxer discussions and celebrities...

Brexit is a very different issue. Complicated - but in other ways.

Not every issue is Black and White, so the one from each side doesn't always apply. We need pro-active fact checkers, during interviews not just after. Context should be given to the figures and statistics put out there too.

To be fair - the latter role should be that taken by a well-briefed interviewer in many situations...

I wasn't being clear. When I say Fact Checking during an interview, I mean on-screen presentation indicating if what is being said is True in Fact, Speculation, False etc. During a live interview, researches will work to give the Interviewer facts to pull up the Interviewee and challenge them, or clarify if what they said is just speculation or assumptions. Repeat viewings of the interview or clips, would include the on-screen fact check

Having read Omnipresent's post again, I think it misrepresents what the BBC actually do (I completely agree with your post).

The BBC are hardly getting Piers Corbyn on every time climate change comes up, and I don't think they've ever shown the anti-vax movement as anything but a lunatic fringe movement. I don't think the BBC is getting it wrong on either Brexit or climate change.