Has ageism finally come of age?

Former BBC presenter Miriam O'Reilly this week won an employment tribunal against the BBC on the grounds of ageism. Does this so-called 'landmark victory' herald a tipping point in the engrained ageist culture and practices of many organisations – not just the BBC, but business generally?

The 53-year-old claimed she had been unfairly dropped from the ‘Countryfile’ show when it moved to a primetime Sunday evening slot in April 2009. The tribunal heard that O'Reilly had been asked if it was "time for Botox" and was warned to be "careful with those wrinkles when high definition comes in".

This victory is obviously good news for all of us who believe that a continued focus on youth – not just in the media, but in business and marketing – is not just an issue of fairness, but one of poor economic judgement. As the UK population continues to age, the epicentre for almost any business is no longer younger people: in fact, the median age of UK adults is now 45.

Michelle Mitchell, charity director at Age UK, has said the outcome sent out "a powerful signal that even in the youth-worshipping world of showbusiness, age discrimination can be withstood". After all, O’Reilly is only one of a number of female TV presenters who have been sidelined with age – for example, Joan Bakewell and Selina Scott have also challenged the BBC on its attitudes to older women.

But why stop there?

Take advertising, for example. The IPA (Institute of Practitioners in Advertising) is due to release its annual agency survey later this month. There is no reason to suppose that this year will be any different to previous years – 50% of agency employees are aged under 30, while just 5% are aged over 50. That this is the result of an ageist culture and practices is undeniable and it can only contribute to an increased schism between many of the larger agencies and the needs of their clients.

In the same week that an 18 year old was jailed for two years for throwing a fire extinguisher off a roof, have we witnessed a tipping point in societal attitudes to age? Probably not, but it’s a significant step in the right direction.

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