Rylan Clark has come under fire this week for comments he made about immigration during a news segment.
His remarks – including claims about free phones, iPads and luxury hotels for asylum seekers – were quickly challenged, fact-checked and widely condemned as sloppy and inaccurate.
Yes, his language was ignorant. Dangerously ignorant in fact. But my bigger question is: why was he in that position in the first place?
Rylan is not a journalist. He has never been trained in the rigour, impartiality and responsibility that come with reporting the news.
He is a highly talented presenter and entertainer, known for his warmth, wit and ability to connect with audiences – but that is not the same thing as interrogating facts, holding power to account or reporting accurately on sensitive issues.
The real issue here is ITV’s decision to put him in that role. And it points to a worrying trend in UK broadcasting: the blurring of lines between entertainment and serious journalism.
As someone who worked as a national news journalist for more than a decade, I know exactly what it takes to earn the privilege of reporting the news.
I undertook years of training, securing NCTJ and NCE qualifications, and gaining a deep understanding of media law, media ethics and the sensitivities that come with covering complex issues.
Accuracy, balance and context weren’t optional extras – they were drilled into me as the foundation of public trust.
That’s why this matters. When broadcasters parachute celebrities into news roles without that grounding, the result is predictable: commentary that “strikes a chord” but fails the basic tests of accuracy and responsibility.
And once misinformation or half-truths are given the authority of a news platform, they are incredibly hard to correct.
Rylan himself is not the villain here. He’s skilled at what he does best: reality TV, chat shows, light entertainment. The fault lies with ITV for handing him a platform that requires a completely different set of skills and standards.
The mere fact he was put in that position shows how far the UK’s news landscape has slid towards “infotainment”.
And it’s not just about one presenter – it’s about the wider decline of journalistic rigour in mainstream media.
We deserve better.
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