ITV has come under fire from Caroline Flack's mother for how it handled former This Morning host Phillip Schofield and for failing to take lessons from Caroline's passing.
According to Christine Flack of BBC Newsnight, presenters are not always protected.
Schofield apologized for lying about his affair in a BBC interview and claimed he had "lost everything.".
ITV claims Schofield has "badly let down" the network and has emphasized that it takes its "duty of care seriously.".
Christine claimed on Newsnight that although presenters are "people," they are occasionally "sidelined, not protected," accusing the broadcaster of treating them like "commodities.".
Christine seemed to be questioning ITV's aftercare as well, saying: "They could have someone speaking for him really, whether he did right or wrong. Really, it's not attractive. ".
Caroline, Christine's daughter who rose to fame as the star of ITV's immensely popular Love Island, was discovered dead in February 2020 at the age of 40.
After being accused of assault by beating, Caroline stepped down from her role as Love Island host in December 2019.
After learning that the prosecution would move forward with the assault charge stemming from an incident involving her boyfriend Lewis Burton, a coroner later concluded that she committed suicide. This was one day before her death.
Since the passing of her daughter more than three years ago, Christine feels that ITV "haven't learned anything.".
If my employer didn't take care of me, there would be "all hell to pay," she told Victoria Derbyshire of the BBC. But there isn't. ".
Christine warned Schofield and his ex-girlfriend against doing "anything silly," claiming that they were going through an "awful time.".
After confessing to fabricating an affair with a younger male colleague, Schofield conducted his first interviews this week.
The TV host was asked how he was, and after a lengthy pause, he responded, "I think I understand how Caroline Flack felt. ".
Schofield "knew Caroline," and when she passed away, "he was very upset," Christine told the BBC.
Christine asserted, "I believe he is now even more aware of what she went through. You feel sad, but you don't understand until it happens to you. ".
Christine said her daughter Caroline had experienced "exactly" what Schofield had described as "relentless" media backlash when he told the BBC.
She remarked, "Everyday she would try to be a little bit stronger, which I should imagine Phillip is [doing]].".
She continued, "The issue is that you keep getting more thrown at you.".
Schofield had "lost his job" and "his world," she said, pleading with people to "let the situation settle," adding, "I think that's enough. For anyone, I believe that is sufficient. ".
ITV stated in a statement that the foundation of its working relationships is trust. We feel deeply let down by Phillip's admission that the assurances he gave to us and his agency were false.
"As a producer and broadcaster, ITV takes its duties of care seriously. To support the mental and physical health of staff members and everyone with whom we collaborate, we have established sound procedures. " .
ITV has already requested an outside review of how it handled Schofield's relationship with his colleague.
The media coverage of Schofield's extramarital affair, for which he came out as gay in 2020, was fueled, in Schofield's opinion, by homophobia.
He claimed that if information about a comparable heterosexual relationship had surfaced, people would have responded with "nudge nudge, wink wink," but "if it's a gay relationship, then suddenly it raises eyebrows.".
People in different age groups do find each other attractive, he continued, so it does happen. I recognize that it has its roots in the workplace and in history, and I understand that, but the main reason it is so pervasive is homophobia. ".
The BBC Action Line has information on organizations that can help if you are impacted by any of the problems discussed in this article.
The entire conversation with Phillip Schofield.
The former This Morning host discusses his relationship with BBC reporter Amol Rajan, as well as the fallout that followed their affair.
Currently available on BBC iPlayer (UK Only).
