He spoke about how duty of care has evolved over the past few years.
Kevin Lygo, who is the head of ITV, has defended the latest season of Love Island, which was hit with thousands of Ofcom complaints.
Over the summer, fans complained about a number of elements of the show, with many citing the bullying and misogynistic behaviour of some of the cast members. Viewers were particularly concerned about Luca and Dami’s treatment of Tasha Ghouri. In the end, both men apologised to Tasha.
Speaking at the Edinburgh TV Festival, Lygo admitted that the show has “made mistakes” in the past, but claimed that the show’s duty of care was “more rigorous than ever”.
According to The Sun, he said: “We are moving into a different era here and we have to be very mindful that there is a certain risk to going on television.
“It may not be exactly what you think it’s going to be as a member of the public, but I don’t think we should stop, because the logical conclusion is: ‘you don’t allow members of the public on telly’. That’s the only way.”
Lygo also spoke about how a number of years ago, duty of care was non-existent, but now it is very rigorous on shows like Love Island.
“It’s come on in leaps and bounds,” he said. “It got its wake up call a few years ago, and now members of the public who are on shows, especially shows that are on for quite a while, are taking through rigorous controls of this is what it’s going to be like.
“Their GPs are contacted, psychologist are involved beforehand. During the show there’s access to psychologists and counsellors all the time, and producers are much more skilled in this as well.”
He added: “Then afterwards there’s care for those who’ve come off television.”
The ITV boss acknowledged that the show can be controversial, but spoke about how these controversies can lead to conversations, which can have an educational impact on viewers.
