B

Baroness Deech (CB)

Speaking in the House of Lords on 28 November 2024

Debate

BBC: Impartiality

Contribution

My Lords, the BBC’s impartiality and accuracy in its coverage of the Israel-Gaza war have been thoroughly documented and found to be failing by the Asserson and Danny Cohen reports. To say that the audience trusts the BBC is no substitute for measuring impartiality. BBC Arabic reporters have been found to be supporting terror and to be anti-Semitic. Among the most egregious failings was Jeremy Bowen jumping to the conclusion that Israel had bombed the al-Ahli Hospital on 17 October last year, when it turned out to be an Islamic Jihad misfired rocket, and never apologising for this report, which caused great reputational damage. Today, a union has urged BBC staff to wear a keffiyeh or the Palestinian flag colours, while the BBC remains silent in this flaunting of impartiality. Will the Minister demand that the BBC set up an inquiry into the BBC Arabic service and, in the next charter review, call for an external ombudsman to settle BBC complaints, which, as we all know, are handled slowly and by the BBC marking its own homework? With all due respect to Ofcom—

More from Baroness Deech (CB)

Other recent Hansard contributions by the same speaker.

About Hansard

Hansard is the official verbatim record of proceedings in the UK Parliament. Every word spoken in the Commons and Lords is recorded and published — this page is a single contribution from that record.

Partner sites