BBC sent THREE TIMES as many staff to cover Mandela death than all rival British broadcasters combined
- ITV has sent just nine staff to cover iconic leader's death in South Africa
- BBC has received 1,695 complaints about its 'excessive' coverage
- Some viewers said emphasis reduced coverage of severe weather in UK
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Nearly three times as many BBC staff
have been sent to cover Nelson Mandela's death than all of its rival
British broadcasters put together, it has been revealed.
The
corporation sent a total of 140 presenters and crew members to South Africa, while Sky News had the second highest number of the British broadcasters with 15.
The BBC said it expected to have deployed about 120 journalists, technicians and support staff to work on the story over a ten-day period. The BBC World Service is also reported to have sent a further 20 staff, whose expenses will not be paid for by licence-fee payers.
Barack Obama gives his eulogy at Nelson Mandela's memorial service as seen on the BBC, which has sent 120 staff to cover the late South African leader's death
The number of BBC staff sent to South Africa was far greater than its rivals, including ITV which reportedly despatched just nine crew to cover proceedings
According to The Times, ITV and Channel 4 sent nine people to cover the event in South Africa, while Channel 5 sent four.
A BBC spokesman told MailOnline: 'Over ten days we’ve deployed around 120 journalists, technicians and support staff for this huge international story.
'We started scaling back significantly following Tuesday’s memorial service.
'Unlike other UK networks, we’ve been providing coverage across numerous domestic and global outlets from a number of different locations for TV, radio and online, including live broadcasts on BBC Two, rolling news on the News Channel and World News, BBC Breakfast, three daily news bulletins, coverage across a number of radio programmes and bulletins on 5live, Radio 4 and Radio 2.
'As always we sought to ensure maximum value for money.'
The BBC has
defended its coverage and said Mandela's death was of 'considerable
interest' to audiences in the UK and across the rest of the world.
Tony Blair is interviewed by George Alagiah on the BBC, live at the Nelson Mandela memorial service in Johannesburg, South Africa
By yesterday the corporation had received 1,695 complaints about too much coverage across its news services, with some saying the emphasis had reduced the coverage of severe weather across the UK last week.
James Harding, the BBC's head of news, apologised to viewers last week.
He
told the BBC's Newsnight programme last Friday: 'Firstly, I'm sorry if
there are people who felt as though we didn't inform them fully of what
was happening in the weather.'
He went on to say Mandela was probably 'the most significant statesman of the last 100 years' and the importance of 'marking his death seems extremely clear to us'.
Hundreds
of world leaders including President Barack Obama and Cuban President
Raul Castro were joined by thousands of ordinary South Africans and Mr
Mandela's family to pay tribute to the anti-apartheid hero at the FNB
football stadium on Tuesday.
Mr Obama led the tributes by calling Mr Mandela a 'giant of history'.
Homage: Nelson Mandela's face is seen on a huge screen next to mourners sheltering from heavy rain with umbrellas during the official memorial service for the late South African president
Mr
Obama opened his speech by thanking Mandela's family, then continued:
'To the people of South Africa - people of every race and walk of life -
the world thanks you for sharing Nelson Mandela with us.
'His
struggle was your struggle. His triumph was your triumph. Your dignity
and hope found expression in his life, and your freedom, your democracy
is his cherished legacy.'
The
US President compared Mr Mandela’s actions to those of Gandhi,
Abraham Lincoln and US civil rights leader Martin Luther King but also
warned against viewing Mr Mandela as detached from normal life.
'He
was not a bust made of marble, he was a man made of flesh and blood,'
he told the crowds in the stadium including leaders from more than 90
countries gathered at the stadium.
The
ceremony was part of South Africa's 10-day farewell to
Mandela, whose remains were lying in state for a second day today at the
Union Buildings in Pretoria, where he was sworn in as the nation's
first black president in 1994.
The
death of Nobel peace laureate Mandela triggered an outpouring of grief
and emotion - as well as celebration and thanksgiving - among his 53
million countrymen and millions more around the world.
His
body will lay in state for a third day tomorrow before being flown to
the Eastern Cape, where he will be buried on Sunday at his ancestral
home in Qunu, 450 miles south of Johannesburg.
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Andy, Warrington, United Kingdom, 15 hours ago
Using modern lightweight equipment of adequate quality, I wonder what the minimum number of reporters could have been? I think perhaps half a dozen.