BBC Gaza Film Deemed a 'Major' Infringement of Media Standards, Declares Ofcom
The public service broadcaster was found to have committed a "significant breach" of media regulations by omitting to mention that the voice of a film about the Gaza conflict was the child of a Hamas official, according to British broadcasting authority Ofcom.
An investigation by the broadcasting watchdog into Gaza: How to Survive a Warzone has determined that the programme was "substantially inaccurate".
The head of the BBC had earlier expressed regret, stating there had been "a serious error in relation to truthfulness".
The regulator has ordered the broadcaster to broadcast a prime-time announcement about its decisions.
"As this represents a significant violation of our rules, we are ordering the BBC to transmit a announcement of our conclusions against it on BBC2 at nine o'clock in the evening, with a timing to be confirmed," the statement read.
'Potential to Undermine Credibility'
The regulator's report said: "The inquiry we conducted concluded that the programme's lack of disclosure that the voice's parent occupied a role in the Hamas-controlled authority was significantly deceptive.
"It meant that the viewers did not have vital facts which may have been extremely pertinent to their evaluation of the voice and the content he provided.
"Credibility is at the center of the relationship between a television network and its viewers, notably for a state-funded media outlet such as the public broadcaster.
"This error had the possibility to erode the very considerable levels of credibility that audiences would have invested in a factual film from the broadcaster about the conflict in Gaza."
The documentary was removed from iPlayer in February after the presenter's family links were revealed, and in July an corporation's own inquiry determined it breached the corporation's content policies on truthfulness.
A representative for the broadcaster said: "The regulator's decision is in line with the conclusions of Peter Johnston's review, that there was a significant failing in the documentary in relation to the broadcaster's journalistic policies on accuracy, which corresponds to Rule 2.2 of the regulator's media standards.
"We have apologised for this and we comply with the authority's determination in full. We will comply with the directive as soon as the schedule and wording are determined."
