BBC may take newsreaders off air after salary release

The BBC may take some of its high-profile newsreaders off the air today to avoid any conflicts of interest when the salaries of the broadcaster's top stars are revealed this morning.

"With the report expected to reveal that the likes of John Humphrys, Fiona Bruce, Kirsty Wark and Laura Kuenssberg are among the 100 or more well-known names earning over £150,000, it is feared that they will be unable to report the subject or conduct interviews with impartiality," the Daily Telegraph says.

The corporation is braced for a backlash over the report, which is expected to reveal an imbalance between men and women earning six-figure salaries. "It's the first time this information will be made public," it says.

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"The BBC admitted the fact that just a third of the 96 on-air staff earning more than £150,000 were female showed the corporation needed to 'go further and faster on issues of gender and diversity'," The Guardian says.