RT could see its licence revoked after Ofcom opened an investigation into the Russian-backed news broadcaster.
It follows a marked increase in the number of potential Broadcasting Code breaches in the wake of the poisoning of former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia.
In a statement, the regulator said that prior to the events in Salisbury in March, the compliance record of licence holder TV Novosti was “not materially out of line with other broadcasters”.
Since Salisbury Ofcom has stepped up its monitoring of RT and found seven programmes that it believes are potential breaches of the Broadcasting Code. Among them are editions of Sputnik, Worlds Apart, Crosstalk and news bulletins themselves.
In response, RT told Broadband TV News: “We are pleased to see that Ofcom has acknowledged RT’s compliance record has been in line with other broadcasters – putting to bed any of the salacious political statements and challenges made against our channel. Our editorial approach has not changed since the events in Salisbury, and we will be directly addressing this matter with the regulator.”
Depending on the severity of the breach, Ofcom could revoke RT’s licence on broadcasting compliance grounds. Alternatively, a financial penalty could be imposed.
Previous breaches on items about Syria, Libya, the Ukraine, Turkey and NATO have revolved around Russia’s foreign policy.
Given TV Novosti is financed by the Russian Federation Ofcom considers that TV Novosti is ultimately controlled by the Russian Federation.
