BBC World - Presenters not allowed to wear poppies

Presenters on BBC World are not allowed to wear poppies because 'the reasoning for them is not widely know internationally.' In my view thats exactly why they should wear them!

What are your views?

(Edited by rts at 9:45 pm on Nov. 2, 2001)

What will happen over the weekend, when News24 is on World. Poppies or no poppies?

Is it the classic `It may offend certain persons` excuse again?

Stu

When it comes to poppies on BBC World you have to ask do CNN anchors wear poppies? I don't think they do.
I've seen on C-Span them have to explain why MP's are wearing red flowers on their clothes ... you can't do that everytime you do a news bulletin.
Why offend viewers around the world??? I agree with the fact that domestic readers should wear them ....
as to joint programmes - overnights is a no poppy zone so I expect that will apply to the joint bulletins over the weekend, although quite a few World bulletins are coming from different studios .... this applies while Breakfast is on the air.

I totally agree. Wars 1 and 2 of the 20th Century were World Wars, so I think the poppy should be a symbolism of respect on November 11th each year [b]worldwide[b].

How can a symbol of respect to those who fell in the wars be deemed offensive? Surely it's offensive to even consider NOT allowing them.

Wear your poppy with Pride

I don't think you are going to offend anyone by wearing them, but as Nicky says - most will not recognize the symbol and its just silly to have to explain it.

I'm sure some viewers in Europe do realise what it means, but viewers further out may not have a clue, and it would just be confusing.

Although, I do think that the poppy symbol should be recognized internationally more. It is about those who died in the wars, and many people did.

My feelings - for what they are worth - is that presenters on BBC World should probably not wear them. Their audience is entirely non-UK based, and the poppy is a pretty British symbol. If you don't know what they mean, they are potentially distracting, and that is not good for clear communication of the news.

However, I think guests should not HAVE to remove them when appearing on BBC World, and I would probably refuse to, as it is an entirely personal choice whether you wish to wear a poppy as a sign of remembrance or not.

For the joint bulletins - I think it is an interesting question. The BBC could face extremely bad publicity at home if presenters on News 24 were seen not wearing them...

At this time when we are at war with terrorism and Afghanistan, is it not right also to remember the inevitable human cost of war?

Political Correctness gone mad!

As ever, the BBC are dancing around Tony Blairs feet!

Who cares what CNN do? For god's sake if BBC World is modelling itself on CNN International then there's need for a very serious re-think somewhere along the line. Who on Earth is going to be bothered by a small red flower that shows respect for people who have died in wars? If that's the sort of audience that BBC World appeals to then I'd be worried if I were you. And whilst The Poppy Appeal is a British thing, the vast majority of BBC World presenters are British. The BBC had better hurry up and find the token presenter with a strange accent, although I think they've actually already done that. It's simply an insult to your audience to think that they can't accept traditions of other countries. When people tune into BBC World they know that they are turning to a British broadcaster, and should therefore expect some difference between an American broadcaster or a Spanish one.

The BBC has become so prissy over recent years. Big deal if a viewer in Guam doesn't celebrate Christmas. If I were a BBC World presenter I'd purposefully sneak a poppy in, if only to ****
off the idiots who make such stupid decisions.

(Edited by c@t at 12:34 am on Nov. 3, 2001)

Erm, what's that got to do with the discussion on poppies on BBC World?

Cheers, Asa

Well I assume that the bulletin today at 2.00pm was a joint one with World, as it had a world headline bed and overnight ident, and Phil Hayton was wearing a poppy on it.