BBC boss defends Top Gear host Jeremy Clarkson and says he's 'not racist'
A BOSS at the BBC has insisted that Top Gear star Jeremy Clarkson is not a racist.
Danny Cohen ordered an internal investigation into the hit show after a string of controversies, and has defended the 54-year-old.
Most recently, Top Gear was criticised by communications watchdog Ofcom for breaching broadcasting rules over a 'racial' term used by Clarkson.
The regulator decided the comment - made by the star during the programme's Burma special screened in March - was offensive.
This came just three months after Clarkson was caught up in another racism row which prompted him to apologise and be given a final warning about his behaviour by the BBC.
While Jeremy and I disagree on the language some have recently found very offensive, I do not think he or anyone on the Top Gear team are racist
In that incident, unaired footage from the programme came to light in which he appeared to use the n-word.
"While Jeremy and I disagree on the language some have recently found very offensive, I do not think he or anyone on the Top Gear team are racist," Cohen wrote in a letter to The Guardian.
Cohen said it was "no secret" there had been "some significant issues" on the show recently and said he "instigated a health check...to ensure that there were no further issues".