SLANG words which refer to people who support and oppose Scottish independence have been added to Ofcom’s list of offensive phrases.
The broadcasting regulator carried out research to see how members of the public respond to certain language, with terms like “boomer”, “TERF”, “Libtard” and “gammon” found to be mildly offensive.
“Nat”, slang for a person who backs independence, was described as mildly offensive – with Ofcom stating it is “unlikely to concern in most circumstances and requiring limited context”.
However “Yoon”, short for Unionist, was classed as moderately offensive. Ofcom stated this word has “greater potential for offence than mild words and a higher level of context should be considered”.
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When compared to other language, both “Nat” and “Yoon” had a low level of recognition among the 600 people involved in the research.
Adam Baxter, the director of standards and audience protection at Ofcom, said the report will help the watchdog take account of public views when making decisions about potentially offensive content.
He added that people’s views on language change over time, making it “essential” for Ofcom to keep up to date on current opinions.
"These findings will help us to strike the right balance between protecting audiences – and children in particular – from unjustified offence, while still allowing broadcasters the creative freedom to reflect real life in their programmes,” Baxter said.
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