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08th Apr 2019

Ofcom investigating ‘white people’ remark by Channel 4 News presenter Jon Snow

James Dawson

Channel 4 News has already issued an apology for Snow’s comment

Media regulator Ofcom has confirmed it is investigating a remark made by Channel 4 News presenter Jon Snow about a recent pro-Brexit rally in London.

Speaking following a report about the protest, held on 29 March, he claimed that he had “never seen so many white people in one place”. A total of 2,644 complaints have been made to the regulator.

Talking on the bulletin, he said: “It’s been the most extraordinary day. A day which has seen… I have never seen so many white people in one place, it’s an extraordinary story. There are people everywhere, there are crowds everywhere.”

Ofcom will also investigate Nigel Farage’s response to Snow, made on LBC, in which he said the 71-year-old broadcaster “should be attacked without doubt” for the comments.

A spokesperson for the regulator, said: “We’re investigating whether comments made by the presenters on these programmes broke our rules on offensive content.”

The investigation follows a Channel 4 News spokesperson saying they regretted “any offence caused by his comment”.

“This was an unscripted observation at the very end of a long week of fast-moving Brexit developments,” they added.

“Jon has covered major events such as this over a long career and this was a spontaneous comment reflecting his observation that, in a London demonstration of that size, ethnic minorities seemed to be significantly under-represented.”