Some of you may have been as shocked I was yesterday seeing the news that Graham Norton and his production company So Television have been reprimanded by the BBC after he wore a Red World AIDS Day Ribbon on the show broadcast 29th November, a couple of days before World AIDS Day.

 

Whilst I completely agree that the BBC has an obligation to remain impartial I fail to see the issue in supporting those living with a virus, or remembering those we have lost to it.

 

This year, I felt more than ever there was an absence of ribbons anywhere, I literally only saw a couple of other people in Manchester wearing them… I was happy that the Town Hall once again put it’s large red ribbon out above the Christmas markets which is always fantastic to see.

 

Graham Norton’s show was watched by an average of 3.29 million people… the majority probably didn’t even notice he was wearing the ribbon… but the fact that there was the potential to raise awareness about HIV to that large an audience is something to be proud of, not something to reprimand someone for.

 

The National AIDS Trust have set up the following petition, please email the BBC and ask them to re-think their position on the ribbon ban.

 

Email the BBC to get them to lift the ban on wearing World AIDS Day red ribbons

 

The news story can be found here.