The director general of the BBC Tim Davie has said people need to follow the broadcaster’s social media rules when asked about the row involving football pundit Gary Lineker.
Lineker came under criticism on Tuesday after he shared, then deleted, a post on his Instagram account from the group, Palestine Lobby, illustrated with a picture of a rat, titled: “Zionism explained in two minutes.”
Rats, linked to disease and dirt, has been used to represent Jews in antisemitic propaganda throughout history, including by the Nazis in 1930s Germany.
Lineker’s agent told the BBC the presenter immediately deleted the post when he learned about the image’s symbolism, which he had previously not appreciated.
Mr Davie, after giving a wide-ranging speech, speaking of trust, disinformation and impartiality, was asked if Lineker had broken the BBC’s rules.
Mr Davie, speaking at The Lowry arts centre in Salford, said: “The BBC’s reputation is held by everyone and when someone makes a mistake, it costs us.
“And I think we absolutely need people to be the exemplars of BBC values and follow our social media policies, simple as that.”
Charity, the Campaign Against Antisemitism has called for Lineker to be sacked.
A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “Gary Lineker really has the worst luck when it comes to campaigning for his causes without aligning himself with extremists and antisemites.
“Not only does this video deliberately misrepresent Zionism — the belief that Jews have the same right to self-determination as everyone else — but it adds a rat emoji in doing so.
“Perhaps Mr Lineker is not as naive or accident prone as he might like us to believe.
“As the BBC’s highest-paid presenter and owner of a major media enterprise,
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