A Shrewsbury mother of two disabled children has won a four- month battle against Channel 4 after Celebrity Big Brother finalist Vinnie Jones used the word ‘retard’ on air.
Nicky Clark, of Copthorne, was one of the first people to make a complaint after Mr Jones used the word on Celebrity Big Brother’s Big Mouth on January 29. She has since continued to press the case with broadcasting watchdog Ofcom, and despite seeing her initial appeals rejected, on Monday officials from Ofcom’s broadcasting review committee ruled Channel 4 had been in breach of guidelines.
Mrs Clark’s eldest daughter Lizzy, 16, suffers from Asperger’s Syndrome and her younger daughter Emily, 13, suffers from autism and has learning difficulties. And she said when the show was broadcast Lizzy had told her the word was used commonly among people her age and was sometimes directed at her.
Mrs Clark also enlisted the help of charity Mencap, and around 750 people who are linked with the charity bombarded Ofcom staff with emails expressing their anger.
Mr Jones used the term to describe the way show presenter Davina McCall had walked when she had entered the house dressed in a chicken’s outfit, and then imitated the walk on set. The footage then remained on the 4OD channel for a further 12 days before being removed.
Mrs Clark said: “It was offensive and should not have been broadcast. I still remember watching it when it was first broadcast and my daughter Lizzy said the word was used all the time, and sometimes had been used to describe her and her sister.
“I feel so vindicated – I can now say to Lizzy and Emily that you can change things and make a difference.
“We kept on fighting even when the first appeals were not upheld and the support from Mencap has been great too.”
An official report by Ofcom stated: “The committee recognised that the potential offence caused by a discriminatory word such as ‘retard’ depends on the context in which it is used. In the committee’s opinion, however, the comments made by both Mr Jones and Ms McCall in this programme were clearly capable of causing offence.
“In reaching this view, the committee noted that the use of the word ‘retard’ by Mr Jones, although arguably intended as a joke and not aimed at an individual with learning difficulties, could be seen as being a comment on people in society with a particular disability.
“This was reinforced by Mr Jones demonstrating walking with difficulty when imitating the way in which Ms McCall had walked.”
The report added that Channel 4 had apologised to the complainant and had taken steps to ensure such a breach did not occur again.
By Peter Kitchen
