Jon Snow condemns "poppy fascism"

LONDON (Reuters) - Channel 4 News host Jon Snow has hit out at "poppy fascism" which puts pressure on people to wear a Remembrance Day poppy.

Snow, 59, said he would never wear anything "that represents any kind of statement" while on air, a move that angered some viewers and reignited a row over the wearing of red poppies.

"I am begged to wear an Aids ribbon, a breast cancer ribbon, a Marie Curie flower," he wrote in a Channel 4 internet diary. "You name it, from the Red Cross to the RNIB, they send me stuff to wear to raise awareness, and I don't.

"And in those terms, and those terms alone, I do not and will not wear a poppy.

"There is a rather unpleasant breed of poppy fascism out there -- 'he damned well must wear a poppy!'. Well I do, in my private life, but I am not going to wear it or any other symbol on air."

Snow added that he respected Britain's armed forces and would remember their sacrifice on Remembrance Sunday.

Presenters on the BBC, ITV and Sky News all wear poppies.

The Royal British Legion, which runs the Poppy Appeal to raise money to help serving and former service personnel and their families, said it was a personal decision.

"We see this as a voluntary gesture of support and would never prescribe when and how any member of the public wears one," a spokesman said.