BBC Gaza Programme Ruled a 'Significant' Violation of Media Regulations, Declares Broadcasting Watchdog
The British broadcaster engaged in a "significant breach" of broadcasting rules by omitting to mention that the presenter of a documentary about the Gaza situation was the son of a Hamas administrator, as determined by British broadcasting authority Ofcom.
An investigation by Ofcom into the documentary titled Gaza: How to Survive a Warzone has found that the programme was "materially misleading".
The BBC's director general had previously apologised, stating there had been "a serious error in relation to factual correctness".
Ofcom has directed the BBC to broadcast a peak-time statement about its conclusions.
"Since this amounts to a significant violation of our regulations, we are ordering the broadcaster to air a statement of our findings against it on the BBC's second channel at nine o'clock in the evening, with a date to be finalised," the statement read.
'Risk to Damage Trust'
The regulator's statement declared: "Our investigation found that the programme's failure to disclose that the voice's parent served in a position in the Hamas-run administration was substantially inaccurate.
"It meant that the viewers did not have essential details which may have been highly relevant to their assessment of the presenter and the details he shared.
"Credibility is at the center of the relationship between a television network and its public, notably for a national broadcasting corporation such as the public broadcaster.
"This oversight had the potential to damage the exceptionally strong levels of trust that audiences would have invested in a factual film from the broadcaster about the conflict in Gaza."
The film was removed from the BBC's streaming service in the month of February after the narrator's familial connections were revealed, and in the month of July an broadcaster's internal assessment found it violated the broadcaster's content policies on accuracy.
A corporation official commented: "The regulator's decision is in agreement with the results of the corporation's inquiry, that there was a significant failing in the programme in relation to the broadcaster's journalistic policies on accuracy, which aligns with clause 2.2 of Ofcom's Broadcasting Code.
"We expressed regret for this and we agree with the authority's determination in its entirety. We will comply with the penalty as soon as the timing and language are finalised."
