Ofcom has ruled that BBC documentary Gaza: How to Survive a Warzone breached Rule 2.2 of the Broadcasting Code after failing to disclose that the narrator’s father held a role in the Hamas-run administration.
The regulator said the omission was “materially misleading”, depriving viewers of context that “may have been highly relevant” to their assessment of the programme. Twenty complaints were escalated to Ofcom after completing the BBC First process, under which complaints must initially be handled by the BBC itself.
The regulator also considered the BBC’s internal review, which had already found a breach of the Corporation’s Editorial Guidelines on accuracy.
As a sanction, Ofcom is directing the BBC to broadcast a statement of its findings on BBC Two at 21:00, with the date to be confirmed. Ofcom said the failing had the potential to erode the high levels of trust audiences place in a BBC factual programme about the Israel-Gaza war.
A BBC spokesperson said: “The Ofcom ruling is in line with the findings of Peter Johnston’s review, that there was a significant failing in the documentary in relation to the BBC’s Editorial Guidelines on accuracy, which reflects Rule 2.2 of Ofcom’s Broadcasting Code. We have apologised for this and we accept Ofcom’s decision in full. We will comply with the sanction as soon as the date and wording are finalised.”
The BBC removed the documentary from iPlayer in February after the boy’s family links emerged.
