Watchdog rejects 5,000 'Big Brother' complaints

The British broadcasting watchdog today rejected nearly 5,000 complaints about alleged bullying and voting problems on the last series of 'Big Brother'.

Most of the complaints received by Ofcom related to concerns that aggressive and intimidating behaviour by housemates was not dealt with appropriately by Channel 4.

Ofcom ruled the broadcaster had responded appropriately in dealing with the issue, but said it should be seen to deal with conflict on the programme quickly in future.

Alexandra De-Gale, known on the show as Alex, was thrown out of the house last June after making comments to other housemates which both Channel 4 and Ofcom said could be seen as threatening.

While discussing who had been nominated for eviction with another housemate, Darnell Swallow, she said “personal offence (was) never forgotten” and made reference to “gangster friends”.

Viewers complained that Channel 4 had not acted swiftly enough to evict Alex, and also that the post-eviction interview with Davina McCall was inappropriate as she had been ejected for unacceptable behaviour.

In its response to the watchdog, Channel 4 said it was right to broadcast what Alex said so that viewers understood why she was thrown out.

An exit interview was important, the broadcaster said, so Alex could have an opportunity to explain herself after she had time to understand the impact of her behaviour on the public.

In its ruling, Ofcom said Channel 4 had a duty to show what happened in the 'Big Brother' house accurately to its viewers, and that conflict was an intrinsic part of the show.

“It should be noted that this series of 'Big Brother' received the highest number of complaints for any series (excluding 'Celebrity Big Brother 2007') - mainly about alleged bullying and aggressive behaviour,” the ruling said.

“While Ofcom has concluded overall in this case that Channel 4 acted with due speed and appropriately, by ensuring that such behaviour was sufficiently placed in context and not endorsed, Channel 4 should be aware of viewer expectations about such material.

“In particular, the broadcaster should be seen to defuse and resolve areas of inappropriate conflict and hostility quickly so as not to prolong the aggression and intimidating behaviour unnecessarily.”