Sacked BBC journalist 'deeply regrets' X posts

A former BBC journalist has told a tribunal he "deeply regrets" social media posts which caused him to be dismissed.

Sean McGinty, who worked for BBC Radio Lancashire for 22 years, was dismissed because his activity on X was deemed to have breached the BBC's social media and editorial policy guidelines.

But McGinty claims his actions were due to his ADHD and a mental health crisis, and he is bringing a tribunal against the BBC claiming unfair dismissal and two claims under the Equality Act 2010.

The BBC does not accept that his actions were due to his disabilities, and maintains it had no alternative other than dismissal.

McGinty became emotional as he told the tribunal "I love the BBC", and he believes his actions could have been avoided if his employer had given him more support.

"I know they were wrong and I deeply regret them," he said about his X posts, and also some blog posts he had written criticising the BBC's reporting.

"The BBC didn't do what they could have done and they had lots of opportunities that they missed to help a long-serving member of staff with ADHD, and low mood, and anxiety."

McGinty who was cross-examined by barrister Bayo Randle, representing the BBC, told the tribunal that the X posts that caused him to be dismissed were out of character.

"You can check my Twitter feed to find out," he said. "It's normally dogs and seagulls and jokes."

In his written witness statement to the tribunal, McGinty explained how he was diagnosed with ADHD as a child and listening to BBC radio became his "escape".

He retrained as a broadcast journalist in his late 30s, and joined the BBC in 2002.

McGinty has told the tribunal how he loved his job for many years, until his mental health worsened due to work stress, alleged bullying, and the Covid pandemic.

He experienced a mental health breakdown in March 2023, which caused him to be signed off work.

He returned to work but had another mental health breakdown in November 2023, which he attributed to his role at the BBC changing as part of the restructuring of BBC local radio.

McGinty described this as "the final straw that triggered a severe mental health crisis".

He was signed off sick on 29 November 2023, and the BBC pursued disciplinary action against him while he was off work with mental health difficulties.

This disciplinary action had been instigated partly because of McGinty's activity on X, but also because of an email he sent to the production team of BBC Radio 5 Live presenter Nihal Arthanayake.

The email, sent on 16 October 2023, criticised Arthanayake for something he posted on X, which was the day after the Hamas attacks of 7 October 2023.

In it, he described Arthanayake as "sociopathic" for suggesting someone could read a book to seek context for the attacks.

McGinty told the tribunal he now regrets sending the email.

"I was in the worst mental health that I've ever been in my life," he said.

"Everything was collapsing in my life around me. I didn't leave the house, I didn't have friends, I didn't have work colleagues, and I was hyper-focused on what was a brutal attack."

McGinty had previously told the tribunal that "hyperfocus" and "justice sensitivity" are among the effects of his ADHD, as are "impulsivity" and "lack of filter".

The BBC dismissed McGinty on 25 July 2024, after six allegations against him were upheld following a disciplinary hearing on 20 June 2024.

McGinty appealed his dismissal and a further investigation was carried out.

The hearing manager for his appeal overturned some of the previous findings, but agreed overall that it was correct to dismiss him.

The tribunal continues.

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