The presenter John Robbie was accused as having made a racist remark amounting to hate speech in an interview 
with Gaye-Derby-Lewis, a well known politician known for her conservative stance in politics of the past. When she described that three Black people had hugged her while leaving the court after charges had been withdrawn, Robbie observed whether she had checked whether she still had her wallet after the hugs. He immediately added that he was “just kidding”. The Tribunal held that John Robbie did not intend to hurt anyone by his observation. Nor was it objectively of such a nature that it could be regarded as racist or as amounting to hate speech based on race. The accent was on the hug and that if persons who do not know you suddenly hug you, you should be suspicious. The problem is, of course, that he was sailing close to the wind, since the stereotype was, unfortunately, ready to pounce upon him. He must have realized this and immediately corrected the situation by observing that he was “just kidding”. Another possible explanation was that he might have included the off the cuff reference because of the interviewee’s conservative stance in her past political career. The complaint was not upheld.
