Radio station Kiss 100 has been rapped by Ofcom for featuring an explicit track by chart-topping star Calvin Harris during an early evening weekly chart rundown.
The station slotted the song Open Wide, which features swearing and strong references to sex acts, into its official top 40, but as the programme was pre-recorded there was no way of making an on-air apology when the error was spotted.
Broadcasting regulator Ofcom said the incident – which occurred at around 5.45pm on November 2 – breached editorial guidelines.
The station said it had been expecting a “radio-friendly edit” of the track and had left space in the show to give its listeners an early preview of the new song.
Kiss said it was “deeply regrettable” that the network had been sent a version which was unsuitable for an early evening show and an apology was broadcast in the countdown a week later.
An Ofcom spokesman said: “Following a detailed investigation, Ofcom recorded breaches of its rules for the broadcast of a music track on Kiss 100 FM featuring sexually suggestive lyrics and offensive language. This was aired during a pre-recorded programme at a time when children were likely to be listening.”
The station said it had overhauled its procedures with experienced members of staff checking all tracks for inappropriate lyrics.
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