CHANNEL 4 has brought in new checks on shows featuring Scots TV chef Gordon Ramsay after being cautioned by Ofcom for allowing the 'f' word to slip into a morning showing of his Kitchen Nightmares show.
Ofcom took action after receiving a complaint about the broadcast of the word "f**king" in the optional subtitles for the programme, around 30 minutes after the start of the programme, despite bleeping the word out.
"I've got to be f**king brutally honest, you know that," the former footballer said on the Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares USA show broadcast at 11am on October 12.
The episode featured The Mixing Bowl restaurant in Bellmore, New York, which later closed. Ofcom found Channel 4 in breach of a rule that states that the most offensive language must not be broadcast before the watershed on television.
Channel 4 accepted that it had breached broadcasting rules, and said that the language had been aired simply as a result of human error.
The broadcaster said checks were to be made of all pre-watershed Gordon Ramsay programmes to ensure that no similar errors occur.
It said the subtitler was made aware of the “the severe impact of their error” and was to be given “refresher training in best practice regarding re-versioning of subtitle files”.
They said the subtitling team was to revise “its guidance around re-versioning of subtitle files, with particular emphasis on checking for strong language”.
Channel 4 also explained that the programme was originally broadcast post-watershed before being edited for the pre-watershed broadcast.
Ofcom said: "Ofcom research on offensive language indicates that the word 'f*** and variations of it are considered by audiences to be among the most offensive.
"We took account of the nature of the error that resulted in this breach and the various steps that Channel 4 has taken as a result of it. However, the broadcast of the word 'f***ing' in this programme’s subtitles before the watershed was a clear breach [of the rule]."
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