The BBC says it regrets antisemitic sentiments made by the rap duo Bob Vylan during a live stream from the Glastonbury music festival.
“The BBC respects freedom of expression but stands firmly against incitement to violence. The antisemitic sentiments expressed by Bob Vylan were utterly unacceptable and have no place on our airwaves,” the BBC said in a statement.
The duo led the crowd in chants of ‘death’ to Israel’s military during their Saturday evening set.
Vylan’s performance from the West Holts stage was not featured on the BBC’s broadcast channels but was streamed in full as part of an extensive offer on BBC iPlayer. As was the case for many of the artists, the performance featured an on-screen warning advised of “discriminatory language”
“The judgment on Saturday to issue a warning on screen while streaming online was in line with our editorial guidelines. In addition, we took the decision not to make the performance available on demand. The team were dealing with a live situation but with hindsight we should have pulled the stream during the performance. We regret this did not happen.”
The BBC now says it will look at its guidance around live events to ensure its teams are clear on when it is acceptable to keep output on air.
