Stars including Miriam Margolyes, Charles Dance and Mike Leigh are among 300 industry figures who signed a damning open letter calling the BBC’s reporting about Israel a cause of ‘great shame’.
The call to arms, signed by 111 anonymous BBC journalists, condemns the broadcaster for being ‘crippled by the fear of being perceived as critical of the Israeli government’ as they accuse coverage of being ‘defined by anti-Palestinian racism’.
It also raises concerns over people in editorial positions that they claim have biases towards Israel.
They are already under fire for its various responses after chants of was broadcast on Saturday ‘Free Palestine’ and ‘Death to the IDF’ were broadcast live during Bob Vylan’s Glastonbury set on Saturday.
Alongside the anonymous BBC staff, 303 media figures have signed their names by the list – including Harry Potter actress Margolyes, veteran star Dance and Oscar-winning director Leigh.
Also signing their names to the list are Misan Harriman, Harry and Meghan’s ‘dear friend’ and go-to photographer, historian William Dalrymple, Truly, Madly, Deeply actress Juliet Stevenson and former editor-in-chief of BBC Arabic Faris Couri.
Still more include standup Alexei Sayle, Fresh Meat actress and wife of Tom Hiddleston Zawe Ashton and Denise Gough, who is currently starring in The Stolen Girl.
Responding to the letter, the broadcaster said that they have produced breaking news, ongoing analysis and investigations covering the war in Gaza, alongside documentaries including Life and Death in Gaza and Gaza 101.
It has been released as Channel 4 prepares to show a documentary about Gaza decommissioned and then scrapped by the BBC.
Alongside the anonymous BBC staff, 303 media figures have signed their names by the list – including Harry Potter actress Margolyes, veteran star Dance and Oscar-winning director Leigh
Also signing their names to the list are Misan Harriman, Harry and Meghan’s ‘dear friend’ and go-to photographer, historian William Dalrymple, Truly, Madly, Deeply actress Juliet Stevenson and former editor-in-chief of BBC Arabic Faris Couri
Still more include standup Alexei Sayle, Fresh Meat actress and Tom Hiddleston’s wife Zawe Ashton and Denise Gough, who is currently starring in The Stolen Girl
Gaza: Doctors Under Attack, which was made by two Emmy award-winning filmmakers, was originally commissioned by the BBC more than a year ago.
But the corporation paused its production in April following the launch of an investigation into another documentary Gaza: How to Survive a War Zone, which starred the son of a leader of Hamas – a fact that film failed to mention.
They said: ‘Robust discussions amongst our editorial teams about our journalism are an essential part of the editorial process. We have ongoing discussions about coverage and listen to feedback from staff and we think these conversations are best had internally.
‘Regarding our coverage of Gaza, the BBC is fully committed to covering the conflict impartially and has produced powerful coverage from the region.’
It comes as BBC staff are said to be ‘in revolt’ as they claim bosses are meddling ‘for political reasons’.
The letter branded the decision not to show the documentary about medics in Gaza as ‘political’ and ‘nothing to do with the journalism of the film’.
BBC insiders behind the open letter to their bosses told MailOnline: ‘For more than a year now we’ve been aware that the BBC’s news output is out of step with reality. Audiences are being asked not to believe their own eyes and ears.
‘Anyone with a phone has seen the footage coming out of Gaza and the West Bank yet BBC News has tied itself in knots with notions of “complexity”.
Channel 4 will show a new documentary about medics in Gaza after it was scrapped by the BBC over bias concerns. Pictured: The funeral of medics in Gaza on June 10
One of the child narrators in BBC documentary ‘Gaza: How to Survive a Warzone’ was 13-year-old Abdulla Eliyazour (pictured)
‘Why have we taken a clear position on Ukraine and Russia when we fail to confidently assert facts when it comes to the Palestinian people?
‘We raised these concerns so many times and we have not been listened to. We are speaking out because we must serve audiences better.
‘The BBC has got form when it comes to Palestine and cowering over reporting facts and context in a fair and robust way. This isn’t the first time they have tied themselves into knots and bent over backwards towards lobby bullies.
‘However the enormity of the decision to not show Gaza: Doctors Under Attack is beyond the pale. One that leaves the top management positions untenable.
‘Not only is their reasoning pathetic, it goes against how the BBC works. Clearly if they don’t understand the meaning of due impartiality, they should not be in the job.
‘Prostrating themselves to mischief-making individuals and groups over listening to their own journalists, particularly when the international courts are investigating Israel for genocide – what else is this but complete complicity?’
Gaza: Doctors Under Attack is a one off-documentary that examines allegations that Israeli forces have repeatedly targeted hospitals in breach of international law.
The programme was made by two-time Emmy-winning journalist Ramita Navai, fellow two-time Emmy-winning director Karim Shah and ex-Channel 4 News Editor Ben De Pear, who is the executive producer of Basement Films, which was commissioned by the BBC to create the film.
People carry the body of a Palestinian at the site where a journalist and three Palestinian medics were killed in an Israeli strike
Channel 4 said it had fact-checked the documentary to ensure that it meets its editorial standards and the Ofcom Broadcasting Code
The source said more than 40 people from BBC Eye, who were involved in the documentary, had signed a letter of protest against the corporation’s.
In total, the open letter has 414 signatures.
Channel 4 said it had fact-checked the documentary, Gaza: Doctors Under Attack, to ensure that it meets its editorial standards and the Ofcom Broadcasting Code.
The film reports that every one of Gaza’s 36 main hospitals has now been attacked or destroyed by Israel, with people forced to evacuate and healthcare workers reportedly killed, imprisoned and tortured.
Louisa Compton, Channel 4’s head of news and current affairs and specialist factual and sport, said: ‘We are showing this programme because we believe that, following thorough fact-checking and verification, we are presenting a duly impartial view of a subject that both divides opinion and frequently provokes dispute about what constitutes a fact.
‘Channel 4 has a strong tradition of putting uncomfortable reporting in front of our audiences.
‘In doing so, we know we will antagonise somebody somewhere sometime. But we do it because we believe it is our duty to tell important journalistic stories – especially those that aren’t being told elsewhere.’
Basement Films, whose founder Ben de Pear signed the open letter, added: ‘This is the third film we have made about the assault on Gaza since October 7th at Basement Films, and whilst none of them have been easy this became by far the most difficult.
The BBC dropped the documentary earlier this month due to bias concerns. Pictured: BBC Headquarters
‘As ever we owe everything to our Palestinian colleagues on the ground; over 200 of whom have been killed by Israel, and the doctors and medics who trusted us with their stories.
‘We want to apologise to the contributors and team for the long delay, and thank Channel 4 for enabling it to be seen.’
The BBC announced that it would not be broadcasting Gaza: Doctors Under Attack on June 20.
‘We wanted the doctors’ voices to be heard,’ the broadcaster said in a statement.
‘Our aim was to find a way to air some of the material in our news programmes, in line with our impartiality standards, before the review was published.
‘For some weeks, the BBC has been working with Basement Films to find a way to tell the stories of these doctors on our platforms.’
But, the corporation added: ‘Yesterday it became apparent that we have reached the end of the road with these discussions.
‘We have come to the conclusion that broadcasting this material risked creating a perception of partiality that would not meet the high standards that the public rightly expect of the BBC.
The BBC documentary, Gaza: How to Survive a Warzone, was broadcast on BBC Two with the aim of showing a ‘vivid and unflinching view of life’ in the enclave
‘Impartiality is a core principle of BBC News. It is one of the reasons that we are the world’s most trusted broadcaster.
‘Therefore, we are transferring ownership of the film material to Basement Films.’
Previously, critics were enraged by the BBC’s failure to disclose that the narrator of Gaza: How to Survive a War Zone was the son of a senior member of the Hamas terrorist group.
It was originally broadcast on February 17 on BBC Two with the aim of showing a ‘vivid and unflinching view of life’ in the strip.
The documentary was made by two producers based in London who remotely directed two cameramen on the ground over nine months.
However, independent investigative journalist David Collier claimed one of the child narrators, Abdullah, was the son of a Hamas government minister and grandson of one of Hamas’s founding members.
Using Facebook and publicly available data online, Mr Collier claimed the show’s young star is the son of Gaza’s deputy minister of agriculture Dr Ayman Al-Yazouri.
This would mean his grandfather would be the Hamas founder Ibrahim al-Yazouri, who has previously been jailed by Egypt and Israel for involvement in proscribed groups.
The BBC apologised for the inclusion of the documentary’s young star, with a spokesperson for the corporation saying: ‘Since the transmission of our documentary on Gaza, the BBC has become aware of the family connections of the film’s narrator, a child called Abdullah.
‘We’ve promised our audiences the highest standards of transparency, so it is only right that as a result of this new information, we add some more detail to the film before its retransmission. We apologise for the omission of that detail from the original film.’
