Lorna Clarke will step away from duties while events at Glastonbury are assessed
BBC director of music Lorna Clarke is understood to have been stood down from day-to-day duties pending an investigation into the live broadcast of Bob Vylan at Glastonbury.
The decision is part of the corporation’s work to better understand the events and “errors in the decision-making process” at Glastonbury Festival which led to a range of antisemitic comments and chants by the punk band being streamed on iPlayer.
A BBC spokesperson said: “We would urge people not to speculate, particularly in relation to any individuals.”
Yesterday (3 July), BBC bosses apologised and promised “proper accountability for those found to be responsible” for errors in the lead up to and during the performance.
In its statement yesterday, the broadcaster revealed that, before the festival, it had identified Bob Vylan as one of seven “high risk” acts but deemed its set suitable for live streaming without a delay prior to the festival, with the mitigations of language or content warnings.
It admitted that the editorial team’s decision on the ground not to cut the feed “was an error”. The live feed remained on iPlayer for around five hours, until shortly after 8pm.
The BBC is implementing immediate changes to livestreaming music events, including ensuring that any performances deemed high risk will not be broadcast or streamed live, while editorial policy support will always be available on site.
Clarke, who has worked for the broadcaster for 28 years, was promoted from pop controller to director of music in 2022. The promotion meant classical music was added to her remit, as well as responsibility for live music events including the annual coverage of Glastonbury.
She earns between £215,000-£219,999 per year as director of music, and her responsibilities also encompass music TV and Radio 1, Radio 2, Radio 3, 6 Music, Radio 1Xtra and the Asian Network.
The decision to stand down Clarke was first reported by The Times.
No comments yet