Hundreds of industry professionals have signed a letter sent to BBC boss Sir Tim Davie demanding fairer coverage of Gaza amid the ongoing war in Israel.
There are 101 anonymous staff at the broadcaster among 230 people who are accusing the BBC of biased coverage towards Israel, calling on more “fairness, accuracy, and impartiality” in its reporting.
Among the signatories are Sayeeda Warsi, a member of the House of Lords, English actress Juliet Stevenson, and historian William Dalrymple.
The letter criticises the BBC for failing its own editorial standards, stating it lacks “consistently fair and accurate evidence-based journalism in its coverage of Gaza”.
This comes after months of criticism towards the broadcaster failing to label Hamas as terrorists over fear it could be seen as taking sides during the conflict.
In the weeks following the October 7 atrocities, Israel condemned the BBC for its reporting after describing the terrorists organisation as “militants”.
However, the calls for impartiality now come from those believing their coverage has been favourable to Israel.
The letter further calls on the Corporation to report “without fear or favour” and to “recommit to the highest editorial standards – with emphasis on fairness, accuracy, and due impartiality”.
The plea lists a series of editorial commitments they wish the BBC to implement. These include: “Reiterating that Israel does not give external journalists access to Gaza; making it clear when there is insufficient evidence to back up Israeli claims; making clear where Israel is the perpetrator in article headlines; including regular historical context predating October 2023; and robustly challenging Israeli government and military representatives in all interviews.”
A current member of staff employed by the BBC also said that some of their fellow workers have left the company over its coverage.
“I have colleagues who have left the BBC in recent months because they just don’t believe our reporting on Israel and Palestine is honest. So many of us feel paralysed by the levels of fear,” they told The Independent.
Profusely denying these claims, the broadcaster has responded to this insisting it “strives to live up to our responsibility to deliver the most trusted and impartial news”.
A BBC spokesperson said: “When we make mistakes or have made changes to the way we report, we are transparent.
“We are also very clear with our audiences on the limitations put on our reporting – including the lack of access into Gaza and restricted access to parts of Lebanon, and our continued efforts to get reporters into those areas.”
