BBC counts the cost of Jeremy Clarkson’s off-road rage for Top Gear

http://www.theguardian.com/media/2015/mar/13/bbc-jeremy-clarkson-cost-off-road-rage

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“Hodge’s apoplexy and Clarkson’s punch-up are expressions of ordinary human emotions,” says Simon Jenkins (Bullying? Rude? Maybe, but we need our leaders to lose it, 12 March). Maybe, but he blurs an important distinction between righteous anger and narcissistic rage. The adrenaline may be the same, but the aetiology is quite different. What led Margaret Hodge to “lose it” was her impatience with the intransigence of wrongdoers (Hodge ‘bullied’ HSBC executives, says Tory, 11 March). What caused Jeremy Clarkson to hit out was simply wounded pride (BBC suspends Clarkson after fracas, 11 March). What she did was just and praiseworthy. What he did was puerile and rude. Jeremy GoringSt Leonards-on-Sea, East Sussex

• Simon Jenkins may be right in asking “What presenter has not wanted to punch a producer from time to time?”  Speaking from the perspective of a long-serving producer, I can say that it is frequently a mutual feeling. Working with the inflated egos of many presenters requires endless patience and the tact of a diplomat. They are frequently drunk on the adulation of constantly being the centre of attention and the huge difference in salaries can make the star feel that their producer is actually an assistant. Good reporters and presenters understand that the producer has the benefit of looking at their work with an objective approach. I look forward to some long-suffering producer pouring very cold water over the head of some prima-donna-ish presenter – no matter how much money his show makes.Jack Saltman Former producer, Panorama, and editor of This Week

• Hadley Freeman (Don’t weep for Clarkson, his friends will look after him, 12 March) could have mentioned the strange sense of victimhood that characterises rich and powerful men. Whenever their unpleasant behaviour gets them into trouble it’s never their fault, it’s the thought police or the bullying media barons. Recently Angela Eagle was reported as saying that the behaviour of many male Tory MPs resembled that of three-year-olds who throw tantrums because they are forced to share their toys with another child. Can I argue for more mature and intelligent women to take the place of these men?Derrick JoadLeeds

• Before your columnists paste in splenetic denunciations of their bete noire (Editorial, 12 March) they should remember that Top Gear is broadcast in more than 50 countries; syndicated to 200 territories; and has an audience of 350 million. We can assume that not all of them are Nigel Farage switching a warehouse-full of TVs on and off. For all the pious disdain for Jeremy Clarkson as sexist, racist, “boorish” etc. it seems that Clarkson and Top Gear are more internationalist and multicultural and do far more for global colour-blind outreach than any other creative effort you could name.Robert FrazerSalford

• Thank you, Zoe Williams, for your succinct explanation of why millions of us can’t bear Top Gear (My vision for an eco-feminist Top Gear, 13 March) and your brilliant alternative to “petrolhead dross”. The BBC now has an outline for a winning programme and a principled solution to its Clarkson problem. All it needs is a new title and presenter. How about Get Moving with Zoe Williams?Ursula DobraszczycStoke on Trent

• Since another of the prime minister’s mates is in trouble (BBC faces multimillion-pound bill for Clarkson’s Top Gear suspension, 12 March) and Dave is refusing to turn up for a TV debate, let Clarkson host the debate. That way Dave will surely turn up and, judging by events of the past few days, it’s bound to be entertaining. Especially if they discuss food.Neil HollowEdinburgh

• I feel jumping mad about the enormous sum of money that the BBC makes out of a programme that promotes the use of very fast cars, badly driven by macho men, when we should be cutting down carbon emissions because of climate change and building a society that respects all races and sexes. Anna CheethamLeicester

• The Clarkson ‘fracas’ seems to have eclipsed the National Audit Office report on the BBC’s cost-saving programme (aka Delivering Quality First) – much more important for licence-payers than the fate of one talented but deeply flawed individual whose cause is championed by a highly vocal minority.Rob LawrenceSouth Newington, Oxfordshire

• There’s no way Jeremy Clarkson would walk away from the BBC. He’d drive.Roger Greatorex London