BBC presenter Scott “proud of accent” after criticism

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BBC presenter Alex Scott said she was “proud of my accent” after a former labor minister and member of the House of Lords criticized her pronunciation.

Digby Jones, who was educated at Bromsgrove Private School, tweeted yesterday that “Alex Scott ruins a good job of pitching at the BBC Olympic team with his very noticeable inability to pronounce his ‘g’ at the end of a word “.

Ms Scott responded by saying that she was proud to come from a working class family in east London.

“I come from a working class family in East London, Poplar, Tower Hamlets and I am PROUD,” she tweeted.

“Proud of the young girl who overcame obstacles, and proud of my accent! It’s me, it’s my journey, my courage.

“A brief for all the young children who may not have some type of privilege in life. Never let judgments about your class, your accent or your appearance hold you back.

“Tweets like this just give me the energy to keep going.”

However, in a follow-up tweet this afternoon, Mr Jones repeated the criticisms, accusing Ms Scott of playing the “working class card”.

He said, “I admire and often publicly praise the adversity you have faced and overcome to achieve all the success you deserve. Not ringing ag at the end of a word is wrong; period.

“It’s not about class, it’s not about accent, it’s about poor speech. Don’t let that spoil your excellent performance elsewhere.”

The former Arsenal and England footballer, who was recently announced as the new host of BBC Football Focus, has received support from colleagues, athletes and politicians.

Alex Scott, please don’t play the working class card. You are much better than that! I often admire and publicly praise the adversity you have faced and overcome to achieve all the success you deserve. Not ringing ag at the end of a word is wrong; period. It is not a question

– Lord Digby Jones (@Digbylj) July 31, 2021

“I like the natural and authentic accents. What annoys me are the people who put the chic accents,” wrote Andy Burnham, Mayor of Greater Manchester and former Minister of Labor.

Labor MP Dawn Butler replied “Keep rising” and while her party colleague Jess Phillips tweeted that the regional accents add “to the joy of coverage of the Olympics”.

Golfer Thomas Bjorn, former footballer Micah Richards and former rugby international Will Carling added to the many voices of support, while Arsenal Women tweeted: “Continue to be you, @AlexScott. Always proud!”

BBC colleague Eilidh Barbour also took to Twitter to defend Ms Scott.

She wrote, “This thread is what makes @AlexScott such a wonderful role model. Keep lifting up.”

Mr Jones is a former Managing Director of the Confederation of British Industry and was Labor Minister for Transport and a member of the House of Lords between 2007 and 2020.

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