TV industry letter accuses BBC of antisemitism

More than 200 people from the TV and film industry have signed a letter to the BBC board calling for an urgent investigation into what it called "systemic problems of antisemitism and bias" at the corporation.

The letter said "208 BBC staff, contractors, suppliers and contributors from across the television and film industries, the majority of whom are Jewish" were in "anguish and disbelief" that complaints about coverage and social media posts during the Israel-Gaza war had not been dealt with.

A BBC spokesperson said it stood "united against any form of abuse, prejudice or intolerance", and had "well-established and robust processes in place to handle any concerns or complaints".

The letter referred to documents sent to BBC chairman Samir Shah, in which the group claimed there had been multiple breaches of the broadcaster's social media guidelines.

Former BBC One controller and now Telegraph columnist Danny Cohen, and former ITV executive Claudia Rosencrantz, were among the signatories.

The letter said: "We are members of the wider British Jewish community and can vouch with certainty that there is a loss of faith in the BBC within our community and a widespread opinion that, when it comes to racism and discrimination at the BBC, 'Jews don't count'.

"By contrast, we are certain that were similar incidents to occur at the expense of any other minority, the BBC would show zero tolerance."

It added that the corporation should be "worried they might have a serious, institutional racism problem".

The signatories requested an urgent formal investigation by the board into the problems, "alongside senior management's demonstrable failure to properly address the issue".

The letter cited posts from Match of the Day presenter Gary Lineker, a previous The Apprentice contestant, and BBC Arabic staff.

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Last year, Lineker was criticised for retweeting a post by a Palestinian campaign group calling for international sports governing bodies to "take an urgent stance on Israel’s grave violations of human rights".

Lineker deleted the post from his feed, and the Guardian newspaper quoted a source as saying he had "misread" it.

The BBC's social media guidelines were updated last year to say presenters of flagship shows had a "particular responsibility to help to balance commitments to both freedom of expression and impartiality".

That change came after Lineker was taken off air in the wake of controversy when he compared the language used to launch the previous government's asylum seeker policy with 1930s Germany.

The Apprentice contestant Asif Munaf received "specialist training" from the broadcaster over his social media posts, which he apologised for in March.

The same month, BBC director general Tim Davie told MPs some tweets by BBC Arabic staff were "unacceptable", and maintained that the broadcaster was "acting fairly and judiciously".

But the letter's signatories claimed "many Jewish staff have felt let down by the BBC".

Former Panorama producer Neil Grant said: "When Jews tell you they feel antisemitism, don't question it or define it for us.

"Simply, Jews don't count inside the BBC. When we present compelling evidence of the BBC's institutionalised antisemitism, signed by over 200 colleagues, we expect to be listened to and not gaslit especially by the BBC Board who won't even formally discuss our concerns."

The BBC said its chairman had responded to the letter directly.

A spokeswoman said: "It is a great concern to us if anyone does not feel supported at work and we have well-established and robust processes in place to handle any concerns or complaints raised with us confidentially.

"We have highlighted these to the signatories of the letter. As an organisation, we stand united against any form of abuse, prejudice or intolerance.

"Editorially, we are committed to the highest standards of impartiality in our journalism and in a small number of cases where there have been mistakes we have acknowledged this. Where staff conduct has fallen below expectations, we have taken action."