The BBC has been urged to address growing concerns over its reporting on the Hamas conflict, as leaders have expressed worry over the wellbeing of the corporation’s Jewish staff.
The Board of Deputies of British Jews has met with the senior leadership at the BBC – including its director general Tim Davie – to encourage the organisation “to commit to a clear series of actions on content and culture by Passover”.
A statement issued by the board’s President Phil Rosenberg has outlined ways in which the BBC should address concerns on its previous reporting of the conflict in Gaza.
Rosenberg has deemed it “not good enough” and demanded that it change.
The Board of Deputies of British Jews President Phil Rosenberg outlined ways in which the BBC should address concerns on its previous reporting of the conflict in Gaza
The Board of Deputies of British Jews
Sharing their demands online, Rosenburg said: “The Festival of Passover begins in mid-April. We believe that this is enough time for the BBC to demonstrate its determination to begin the significant changes which need to take place in order for it to return to the high standards we all expect from our national public broadcaster.”
He added: “The British Jewish community has long been sounding the alarm regarding BBC misreporting on the Israeli-Palestinian conflicts; not just for years, but for decades”.
His statement further claims that the corporation included a “significant number of errors in its coverage” of the conflict has been recorded by the board.
“The BBC leadership needs to grip the issue with a seriousness and urgency we have not yet seen,” he added.
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Some of the recommendations included a formal commitment with a set timeframe for a review to take place into the broadcaster’s reporting on Israel-Gaza since the October 7 attacks took place in 2023.
Additionally, the board flagged issues with areas of mistranslation of the words “Yahud/Yahudi” – which means Jew/Jews – as “Israeli/Israelis” when noted by Palestinians.
They also have demanded that the corporation “urgently address the serious deterioration in the health and well-being of Jewish staff, including a sense of pervasive hostility and isolation over the past 18 months”.
Among a number of other recommendations, the board encouraged the BBC to find a means in which to “rapidly address serious editorial breaches”.
The BBC has insisted that the “conduct and welfare of all of our staff is an absolute priority”
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A BBC spokesman said: “We were pleased to meet the Board of Deputies and thank them for the constructive discussions. We will always listen to concerns that are raised with us.
“While we do not agree with the characterisation of some of what was discussed, we will give careful consideration to the issues raised and are committed to continuing an open and ongoing dialogue.
“The BBC sets the highest possible editorial standards across our output and we take our responsibilities for impartiality and trust in our content extremely seriously.
“Alongside this, the conduct and welfare of all of our staff is an absolute priority.”
