Why did BBC sideline Mosley revelations?

IT WAS the Daily Mail’s top story and made headlines across other papers yesterday.

But Max Mosley’s vile, racist election leaflet was barely mentioned on one of the BBC’s flagship news broadcasts.

Radio 4’s Today programme only gave the story airtime as part of its newspaper review.

It is understood insiders decided against giving full coverage because Impress – the press regulator bankrolled by Mosley – had not issued a proper response.

But Today at least covered the story, unlike the broadcaster’s main bulletins on radio and TV throughout the day.

Coverage did not appear on the BBC News website until midday – and Mosley was then described as a ‘privacy campaigner’.

In contrast, Mosley’s battle to muzzle the press has seen the former fascist supporter repeatedly given airtime on BBC television and radio since his 2008 case against the News Of The World.

He made several appearances on the Today programme to discuss the Leveson Inquiry into press ethics, defining the ‘right to privacy’ and his idea of giving people ‘prior notification of publication’ before critical stories go to press.

In a 2009 broadcast for Radio 4’s Law In Action programme, he told how he wanted the law changed so journalists who breached privacy could be jailed.

Last night a BBC spokesman said: ‘This story was promoted prominently on the front page of the BBC News website and in the Top Stories section of the app and on the Politics index.’

The corporation also included links to the Daily Mail’s online coverage of the story.