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Moonlighting BBC stars rake in thousands in outside fees

Details of how much cash the BBC’s top journalists made in outside earnings last year have been revealed.

According to The Times, the corporation’s highest paid hacks accepted a total of 480 jobs last year – including speeches and appearing on non-BBC shows.

The broadcaster revealed that some stars earned as much as £10,000 for single events.

Emily Maitlis, the lead anchor of BBC Two’s Newsnight, is believed to have earned more than £40,000 for external events – on top of her £325,000 BBC salary.

Meanwhile BBC Breakfast presenter Naga Munchetty, who is paid over £255,000 a year, took in more than £50,000 on top of her salary.

Clive Myrie and Dan Walker may have earned more than £10,000 and £15,000 respectively, reports suggest.

‘Trumpian shabbiness’

Maitlis was forced to apologise recently for retweeting a message criticising the “sheer tawdry Trumpian shabbiness” of the Government’s response to the Downing Street parties.

The presenter, 51, shared a tweet by former Tory Cabinet minister Rory Stewart, in which he said “it is difficult to see how much more of this the party or our political system can survive”.

Stewart was responding to a video of an interview in which Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries defended Boris Johnson’s handling of the publication of Sue Gray’s “update”.

Maitlis wrote: “I have deleted my earlier retweet of the below and would like to apologise for the hurt I have caused.

“For the avoidance of doubt I accept I should have added extra context – it was retweeted in haste – and was wrong to do.”

In doing so, she reshared Stewart’s original message.

A spokeswoman for the BBC declined to comment further.

‘Controversial’

In June, Maitlis was reprimanded by the broadcaster after she shared a post by Piers Morgan on social media which it described as “clearly controversial”.

A statement on the complaints section of the BBC’s website criticised the journalist and presenter’s social media activity after she shared the post by former Good Morning Britain presenter Morgan in February.

The Twitter post said: “If failing to quarantine properly is punishable by 10yrs in prison, what is the punishment for failing to properly protect the country from a pandemic?”

BBC director-general Tim Davie warned staff over their use of social media when he took on the role at the end of 2020.

In the same year, the BBC ruled a monologue by Maitlis on Newsnight about the row over Dominic Cummings’ trip to Durham breached impartiality rules.

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Henry Goodwin

Henry is a reporter with a keen interest in politics and current affairs. He read History at the University of Cambridge and has a Masters in Newspaper Journalism from City, University of London. Follow him on Twitter: @HenGoodwin.

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