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BBC star insists he is not homophobic
"Offending" BBC star Ross with house-band Four Poofs and a Piano
Ross cleared of offending gays with adoption "joke"
"I am mortified to hear some people thought I was being homophobic on radio show"
Jonathan Ross was cleared today by the media regulator Ofcom of making "offensive and derogatory" comments about gay people on his BBC Radio 2 show in May. More than 60 complaints were received after his live and unscripted remark concerning the prizes for that week's competition, the majority of which were Hannah Montana merchandise.
Ross had joked that if any listener's son wanted a Hannah Montana watch, they may want to consider putting that son up for adoption before he brought his partner home.
The BBC at the time said that the comment was "off-the-cuff," and that "Jonathan is not homophobic in any sense and never meant for his comments to be taken seriously." Ross himself wrote on his Twitter page "Am mortified to hear some people thought I was being homophobic on Radio show. Nothing could be further from truth, as I am sure most know."
In its ruling, Ofcom said: "In Ofcom's opinion, the comment was clearly presented as a joke intended to make light of the reactions that some parents may have if their child chooses a toy that is very widely recognised to be designed and marketed for the opposite sex. The humour was therefore based on the absurdity of the scenario and was not intended to cause offence."
