Complaint
The programme included an interview with a demographer who expressed his concerns about the adverse consequences of declining birth rates and aging populations.ΜύΜύ A listener complained that no attention was given to the benefits which would arise from a smaller world population (which, in his view, outweighed the adverse effects).Μύ The ECU considered the complaint in the light of the Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ’s editorial standards of impartiality.
Outcome
While acknowledging that a case could be made for regarding population decline as beneficial, the ECU noted that it was not a requirement of impartiality that a range of views should be offered on every occasion on which a controversial topic is addressed, and considered that the presenter had challenged the interviewee appropriately with questions which reflected an alternative viewpoint.
Not Upheld