News that Selina Scott is set to sue Channel Five over ageism follows controversy when Carol Klein was not chosen as the new presenter of Gardener's World after previous presenter, Monty Don, stepped down after suffering a stroke. Scott has spoken out on ageism in broadcasting before and earlier this year commented, "How many women are there on mainstream current affairs programmes who are over 50?" she said. "Anna Ford has retired, Moira Stuart has been bumped, yet you look around and see lots of men."
Scott was in the line-up of candidates to replace Natasha Kaplinsky on Five News when she went on maternity leave. The implication is clearly that producers feel women news readers should be 'totty' and that apparently translates as under 50. Kaplinsky will be covered by two younger news readers, one female and one male - and both young.
The Carol Klein issue may not be directly comparable as she was replaced by a younger male presenter, but you can't help suspecting that if she had been under 40 she might have stood a better chance of getting the job.
If Scott continues with her claim it will be an interesting one to watch as it is very difficult for a claimant to prove that age was the most important factor in an employer's selection decision. Indirect discrimination could be important here. Perhaps it's time to for HR to look at the age range in your recent recruitment and promotion decisions?
While on the subject, surely it is time for newspapers to stop the practice of giving people's ages even when the article has no relevance to age. Older readers of satirical newspaper Private Eye will remember this has been a running gag for about 40 years.
Noel O'Reilly is 92.
