BBC In Gaza Aid Row

international | anti-war / imperialism | other press

Saturday January 24, 2009 21:58

by Boycott Israel

The BBC Refuses To Broadcast An Appeal For Aid

This story appeared in todays English Independent:

BBC under pressure over Gaza emergency appeal
By Andrew Woodcock and Wesley Johnson, PA
Saturday, 24 January 2009

The BBC came under mounting pressure today to screen an emergency appeal for Gaza, after ITV, Channel 4 and Five all announced they will show it.
Thousands of protesters joined a demonstration in London, while a string of politicians, including senior Government ministers, urged the BBC to reconsider its decision not to broadcast the Disasters Emergency Committee appeal.

The DEC - which brings together several major aid charities including the British Red Cross, Save the Children and Oxfam - wants the appeal to be broadcast on TV and radio from Monday to help raise millions of pounds for people in need of food, medicines and shelter following Israel's three-week assault on the Palestinian territory. DEC chief executive Brendan Gormley has voiced disappointment at the BBC's decision.

BBC Trust chairman Sir Michael Lyons voiced concern that comments made by politicians today were coming close to "undue interference" in the BBC's editorial independence.
He said that the judgment on whether the broadcast should be shown was not for the Trust, which oversees the Corporation on behalf of the public, but for the BBC's senior editorial executives, led by director general Mark Thompson.

Mr Thompson last night rejected a plea from International Development Secretary Douglas Alexander to screen the appeal, warning that a broadcast could compromise the impartiality of the BBC's reporting from the Palestinian territory.

"After consultation with senior news editors, we concluded that to broadcast a free-standing appeal, no matter how carefully couched, ran the risk of calling into question the public's confidence in the BBC's impartiality in its coverage of the story as a whole," he said.

But his argument was dismissed as "completely feeble" by health minister Ben Bradshaw, while Communities Secretary Hazel Blears called on the BBC to review its decision and urged the public to continue donating to the DEC appeal.

Britain's first Muslim minister Shahid Malik warned that the Corporation's decision would be seen around the world as "one which inflicts still further misery on the beleaguered and suffering people of Gaza".

Former Labour minister Tony Benn told the crowd: "People are dying in Gaza and if the appeal was made they would get the resources they need.
"It's not about the BBC. Millions of pounds will be raised by an appeal. People who are dying in Gaza would get the materials and supplies they need."

The clip below is an interview with Tony Benn from BBC News 24 (before ITV, Channel 4, and Channel Five decided to broadcast the DEC appeal)

Caption: Video Id: ix5CkWWeSmI Type: Youtube Video
Embedded video Youtube Video

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Comments (5 of 5)

Speeches from yesterdays protest in London

by Miriam

Sun Jan 25, 2009 16:42

The fuzz say there were about 5K at the protest. The BBC (impartial as ever) had revised its original claim of 200 (!) up to 2K. My my!

Speeches from the protest now all up on Youtube:

http://uk.youtube.com/user/adycousins

Absolutely right, Tony Benn!

by Fred Johnston

Sun Jan 25, 2009 03:28

They don't make 'em like Tony Benn any more; that courage, determination, backed by a solid knowledge of the facts, is despairingly absent from our politicians. The BBC bowed to Israeli pressure without a doubt, and one squirms to hear them say they didn't. No doubt pressure was brought to bear in Ireland on politicians to back-track on calls for the expulsion of the Israeli Ambassador. A little US nudging would have been involved too. The Israeli Embassy, meanwhile, will no doubt continue to try to recruit artists and writers here to appear on cultural platforms in Israel.

Trócaire on-line call on EU to rescind Israel's trade privileges

by Justin Morahan

Sun Jan 25, 2009 00:40

Trócaire have an important on-line Action on Gaza that you can sign at http://www.trocaire.org/gazaaction

It calls on Micheál Martin to table a motion at the Foreign Ministers meeting on the 26th of January calling for Israel's trade privileges to be rescinded until such time as Israel complies with its obligations under international humanitarian law.

It also calls on the Minister to issue a public statement indicating his intent to table this motion.

.

IRONIC BBC

by Sean Og

Sun Jan 25, 2009 00:08

The BBC has often been shown to criticise Israel

The various charities have often used their adverts and spokes men to criticise Israel

Is there some belated attempt at "balance " here ?

maybe the BBC will do a Jonathan Ross prank call special instead.

by comic relief

Sat Jan 24, 2009 23:01

But seriously, the media politics of Brit telly ought prompt us to consider our own Irish TV response to Israel's slaughter in Gaza & notedly absent attempts to plough that furrow of impartiality which since Abel's split skull has creased the brow of diplomatic hypocrisy.

if you know what I mean.

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BBC In Gaza Aid Row

Comments (5 of 5)