Fury at BBC 'marking its own homework' as investigation finds 'death to the IDF' chants did not incite violence
The former director of BBC Television told LBC that ‘death, death to the IDF’ chants on stage at Glastonbury were a “clear incitement” to violence and that a corporation investigation into the controversy was an example of them ‘marking their own homework’.
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Danny Cohen said : “Any time you chant ‘death, death’ that’s a clear incitement [to violence].”
It comes after the BBC’s complaints unit ruled that chants of ‘death to the IDF’ at Glastonbury did not breach editorial guidelines preventing the broadcaster from airing material that could incite violence.
The corporation said: “in the context of a performance at a music festival, the chanting of slogans can be regarded as primarily an invitation to endorse a particular attitude.”
Mr Cohen said: “I think this was the single worst failure of editorial standards by the BBC in recent memory.
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“Even in those circumstances the BBC has tried to evade full responsibility for the failure.”
He said that accusations of the BBC ‘marking its own homework’ were ‘very valid’
“It’s not rocket science. The people who investigate complaints in this incident have their salaries paid by the BBC and report to other managers at the BBC.
“It seems very clear… that their job appears to be to minimise the BBC’s responsibility, excuse failures by the BBC, rather than hold it to account on behalf of licence fee payers.”
The BBC’s internal complaints service found the chants could be considered “no more than expressions of support for aspirations to a Palestinian state and do not of themselves threaten violent action”.
The BBC accepted that chanting “Death to the IDF” was “clearly more problematic”, but decided that the slogan was “directed at an institution rather than individuals, and one which is not defined by ethnic or religious composition”.
Tim Davie, the BBC director general said it had clearly been a ‘significant mistake’ to allow the chants to be broadcast.
The BBC did however uphold complaints that broadcasting the gig breached guidelines covering harm and offence.
In September, a Bob Vylan gig was cancelled in the Netherlands after frontman Bobby Vylan, whose real name is Pascal Robinson-Foster, made a series of remarks about the assassination of right wing US political activist Charlie Kirk.
He said to a crowd at a separate concert in the Netherlands: “The pronouns was/were. Cause if you chat s--- you will get banged. Rest in peace Charlie Kirk, you piece of s---.”
He later denied celebrating Charlie Kirk’s death.