BRITAIN'S media regulator today said the broadcaster Channel Four was guilty of "serious editorial misjudgment" over its handling of a racism row on a reality show that made headlines around the world.
Celebrity Big Brother was dogged by accusations of racism after Indian Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty faced a tirade of abuse from fellow contestants.
The controversial show sparked protests in Britain, where 40,000 viewers complained to regulator Ofcom and questions were asked in Parliament.
Supporters of Shetty in her homeland of India burned effigies of her abusers.
The watchdog, imposing what it called an unprecedented level of sanction, ordered the channel to make a series of on-air apologies when the next series of the Big Brother show is aired next month.
Ofcom concluded that ldquo;Channel Four had made serious editorial misjudgments rdquo; in the show, in which contestants are put together in a house over many weeks with round-the-clock camera surveillance and voted out one-by-one by viewers.
Channel Four Chief Executive Andy Duncan said: ldquo;We accept Ofcom's judgment that on the occasions in question we did not ensure that Big Brother intervened with the necessary promptness or strength. rdquo;
Labour lawmaker Keith Vaz, who led the protests in Parliament over the show, called for Duncan's resignation and said: ldquo;This is a watershed for broadcasting in this country. rdquo;
After winning the show, Shetty sought to play down the racism claims.
ldquo;People make mistakes and we are all human beings and we are all fallible, rdquo; she said.
ldquo;I know one thing for sure, Jade really didn't mean to be racist. rdquo;
Big Brother is produced by Dutch television production company Endemol.
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