BBC Gaza Programme Deemed a 'Significant' Violation of Media Regulations, Says Ofcom
The BBC engaged in a "significant breach" of broadcasting rules by not revealing that the narrator of a programme about the Gaza situation was the son of a Hamas administrator, according to regulatory body Ofcom.
An investigation by the broadcasting watchdog into the documentary titled Gaza: How to Survive a Warzone has concluded that the programme was "substantially inaccurate".
The head of the BBC had earlier expressed regret, saying there had been "a serious error in relation to truthfulness".
The regulator has directed the BBC to air a evening statement about its conclusions.
"Given this constitutes a serious breach of our rules, we are directing the broadcaster to broadcast a message of our conclusions against it on BBC2 at nine o'clock in the evening, with a schedule to be confirmed," it said.
'Potential to Undermine Trust'
The authority's statement declared: "Our investigation found that the film's failure to disclose that the presenter's parent served in a post in the Hamas-administered authority was significantly deceptive.
"This implied that the viewers did not have vital facts which may have been highly relevant to their judgment of the presenter and the information he shared.
"Trust is at the center of the connection between a broadcaster and its public, notably for a public service broadcaster such as the BBC.
"This error had the potential to undermine the significantly high amounts of trust that the public would have invested in a factual film from the broadcaster about the conflict in Gaza."
The programme was withdrawn from the BBC's streaming service in the month of February after the boy's family links were revealed, and in July an corporation's own inquiry found it breached the organization's editorial guidelines on accuracy.
A BBC spokesperson said: "The authority's determination is in agreement with the results of the corporation's inquiry, that there was a significant failing in the film in relation to the BBC's Editorial Guidelines on factual correctness, which aligns with regulation 2.2 of the authority's broadcasting regulations.
"We have apologised for this and we agree with the regulator's ruling in complete. We will adhere to the directive as soon as the date and wording are finalised."
