When Gary Lineker bids farewell to the BBC on Sunday, his former bosses will be hoping for an end to their problems with headstrong stars harder than England football fans do at major tournaments. And, like England fans, they are sure to be disappointed.

For Lineker was just the highest-profile example representing two existential challenges for the BBC: how to maintain its reputation for impartiality, and how to do so in a toxic and divisive age. Few issues are so difficult, or are being so badly handled by the BBC right now, as the Israel-Gaza conflict.

Lineker blew the final whistle on his BBC career by sharing a video on Instagram that featured an image of a rat over an explanation of Zionism. He followed with a genuinely contrite apology in which he admitted he had not even seen what he called an “emoji with awful connotations”, but the damage had been done.

His departure had been a long time coming. In 2023, Lineker – never a journalist – tweeted criticising the government’s asylum policy, which led to the corporation drawing up guidance for “personal use of social media” for journalists and “flagship programme presenters”. Lineker became the litmus test for the meaning of impartiality in the institution.

The guidelines were meant to draw a line in the sand, while recognising that for its star presenters, building a media brand online is increasingly vital in an age in which more........

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