There has been a fresh backlash after the BBC described an ISIS-inspired shooting in Brussels as a ‘terror attack‘ despite refusing to do the same for Hamas massacring Israeli civilians.
Shortly after reports of the double killing in Belgium emerged, the BBC published an article with the headline: ‘Brussels shooting: Suspects at large after two Swedes killed in terror attack.’
The ‘terror’ and the protests
Its use of the term ‘terror’ was quickly picked up on and the headline was later changed to ‘Brussels shooting: Two Swedes killed and suspect still at large’.
On Monday, the BBC said it has received complaints about its coverage of the conflict and there have been accusations of bias from both sides.
The complaints are in the high hundreds, rather than the thousands, it is understood.
Also on Monday, hundreds of protesters booed the BBC and demanded the corporation labels Hamas as ‘terrorists’ at a rally outside Broadcasting House.
The initial headline reporting on the attack in Brussels sparked fury on social media.
Nick Timothy, a former special adviser to former Prime Minister Theresa May, tweeted: ‘I thought Jews Don’t Count was a critique, not the title of the BBC style guide.’
Investigative report David Collier said: ‘1,300 Jews get slaughtered. The BBC says it is not terrorism.
‘A shooting in Brussels and within the hour… The BBC says it is terrorism. Utter b******s.’
Meanwhile, the journalist Nicole Lampert called the BBC’s first headline ‘extraordinary’, adding: ‘The BBC has refused to use the term ‘terror attack’ for the Hamas massacre yet they’ve used it within two hours of one in Brussels.’
BBC responds……
Monday, after its regular monthly meeting, the BBC board released a new statement responding to criticism of its editorial policy.
The BBC said it ‘expects’ and ‘welcomes’ scrutiny after criticism of its decision not to call Hamas terrorists.
The BBC said the headline was ‘swiftly changed’ and it was a ‘mistake’ not to have ‘attributed the words’.
A statement read: ‘No one who has watched or listened to harrowing reports over the last 10 days could be left in any doubt about the horror brought about by Hamas’s attack on defenceless civilians in Israel.
‘As this war continues, with so many deaths of innocent civilians in both Israel and Gaza, the BBC will no doubt continue to come under scrutiny about the way in which we cover it – that is to be expected and also welcomed. The BBC is listening.
‘We believe that our editorial guidelines serve us well, and continue to serve us well in difficult circumstances; we do periodically review them as a matter of course, and when we do so at our next planned review in the spring, we will consult and debate these issues just as we always do.’
