Journalists doorstepping Bradley Wiggins receive angry response on social media

BBC reporters accused of "gutter journalism" after waiting outside Wiggins's house

Bradley Wiggins fends off journalists at his house in Lancashire (Credit: Twitter/Richard Conway)

(Image credit: Twitter/Richard Conway))

The day after the chief executive of UK Anti-Doping confirmed that there was "no paper trail" to track the contents of the package delivered to Team Sky and Bradley Wiggins at the 2011 Critérium du Dauphiné, Wiggins faced questions from journalists waiting outside his house in Lancashire.

>>> MPs will not question Bradley Wiggins over medical package and TUEs

According to BBC editorial guidelines, doorstepping is a "last resort" needing approval of a senior editorial figure, with approval only given if there is evidence of "significant wrongdoing" and the subject of the doorstepping has failed to respond to multiple requests for interview.

Reaction to the the journalists' approach was mixed on Twitter, with a significant number of users criticising the doorstepping.

However Conway defended the approach, saying that legitimate questions needed to be asked, which was echoed by former BBC presenter Jake Humphrey who also retweeted Roan's video.

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Richard Windsor

Follow on Twitter: @richwindy


Richard is digital editor of Cycling Weekly. Joining the team in 2013, Richard became editor of the website in 2014 and coordinates site content and strategy, leading the news team in coverage of the world's biggest races and working with the tech editor to deliver comprehensive buying guides, reviews, and the latest product news.


An occasional racer, Richard spends most of his time preparing for long-distance touring rides these days, or getting out to the Surrey Hills on the weekend on his Specialized Tarmac SL6 (with an obligatory pub stop of course).