Loose Women air domestic abuse special just a day after the same network put Gary Goldsmith in the spotlight as a contestant on Celebrity Big Brother…
There appears to be double standards at play in ITV when it comes to dealing with personalities at the broadcaster, fuled by ratings and the hope of insider gossip for CBB.
Loose Women today aired a special edition that coincided with their new domestic abuse awareness campaign, Facing It Together; this aired less than 24 hours from Celebrity Big Brother which has been criticised by Women’s Aid for showcasing Gary Goldsmith who pleaded guilty in 2017 to punching his fourth wife to the ground and was fined £5000.
TV Critic Vivian Summers:
“If ITV believes you can plead guilty and punishment be served, and your past issues aren’t a barrier to being in programming on the network then will we be seeing Phillip Schofield back on air? After all Phillip – despite the nightly hounding by Dan Wootton on GB News – is someone who hasn’t been convicted, let alone arrested, for anything. Is the holier-than-thou ITV thrown to the wind when a chance of chasing cheap ratings and tabloid inches is a possibility?
“This isn’t the first time, of course, Jeremy Kyle – as odious as his programme was – was dropped like a hot potato when there was a death related to his dire output. However, despite several deaths associated with Love Island, it continues. And that is because it is much more lucrative. It is as simple as that. Principals and all that goes out the window when the dosh is rolling in it seems.”
On Loose Women today viewers saw Brenda Edwards, Charlene White, Denise Welch, Frankie Bridge, Judi Love, Kelle Bryan, Olivia Attwood-Dack and Sunetra Sarker taking part in a recent emotive photoshoot and short film to raise awareness around domestic abuse and say “Whether you are a survivor or a friend, we are facing it together.”
Denise, Olivia, Kelle and Brenda, all four of whom have personally experienced domestic abuse, stand shoulder to shoulder with their fellow panellists and friends in the key image and film – in a show of support and solidarity with those currently facing domestic abuse, as well as survivors, and to let them know that they’re not alone. The campaign, which has been guided by Women’s Aid and SafeLives, aims to highlight the help available to those living with domestic abuse and the key ways in which friends and family can spot the signs or support loved ones living with domestic abuse.
It is one of the charities involved with the Loose Women campaign that today called out ITV on their Celebrity Big Brother wife thumper. In a statement, they said:
“The decision to include a man who has been charged and pleaded guilty to, assaulting his wife, in the Celebrity Big Brother house demonstrates the lack of awareness that the production team has when it comes to survivors of domestic abuse. The producers should consider how Gary Goldsmith’s appearance will impact women who have survived domestic abuse and how they will feel watching him on TV every night.
“At Women’s Aid, we would urge the producers to consider how they approach this, as for many survivors of abuse, the inclusion of men convicted of abuse in entertainment programmes will already be a sign that these crimes are not taken seriously. The entertainment industry has to consider the impact on women of who they give a platform to and derive entertainment value from,”
Gary Goldsmith is a businessman and entrepreneur who is the brother of Carole Middleton and the maternal uncle of Catherine, Princess of Wales. However he has had a couple of controversies in his recent past.
In July 2009, Goldsmith was the subject of a “sting” by News of the World in which he was filmed dealing cocaine to an undercover reporter. Goldsmith married his fourth wife Julie-Ann Brown in 2012 and was soon back in the headlines when, in November 2017, Goldsmith was charged with assault by beating and was subsequently fined £5,000 after being found guilty of assaulting Julie-Ann.
ITV in a statement noted of the CBB inclusion of Goldsmith ‘All housemates undertake training in language and behaviour before entering the Big Brother house. All behaviour in the house is strictly monitored at all times.’ Which doesn’t particularly address the issue. Goldsmith himself said, via ITV, ‘The offence is long since spent however my regret continues.’
