Summary of complaint
We received complaints from some audience members unhappy with our decision not to proceed with the programme.
Our response
ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ News is determined to report all aspects of the conflict in the Middle East impartially and fairly. Over a year ago we commissioned Gaza: Doctors Under Attack, a documentary about the plight of medics in Gaza, from an independent production company, Basement Films.
We paused production of this film in April, having made a decision that we could not broadcast the film while a review into a separate Gaza documentary was ongoing. With both films coming from independent production companies, and both about Gaza, it was right to wait for any relevant findings – and put them into action – before broadcasting the film.
However, we wanted the doctors’ voices to be heard. Our aim was to find a way to air some of the material in our news programmes, in line with our impartiality standards, before the review was published.
For some weeks, the ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ has been working with Basement Films to find a way to tell the stories of these doctors on our platforms.
It recently became apparent that we have reached the end of the road with these discussions. We have come to the conclusion that broadcasting this material risked creating a perception of partiality that would not meet the high standards that the public rightly expect of the ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½. Impartiality is a core principle of ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ News. It is one of the reasons that we are the world’s most trusted broadcaster.
Therefore, we are transferring ownership of the film material to Basement Films. Contrary to some reports, since we paused production of Gaza: Doctors Under Attack in April, it has not undergone the ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½â€™s final pre-broadcast sign-off processes. Any film broadcast will not be a ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ film.
The ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ has produced powerful coverage of this conflict. Alongside breaking news and ongoing analysis, we have produced award-winning documentaries such as Life and Death in Gaza, and Gaza 101. We have also investigated allegations of abuse of Palestinian prisoners and Israel’s attacks on Gaza’s hospitals. We recently ran a powerful piece of longform journalism that captures the final two weeks inside a Gaza hospital before it was forced to close.
We want to thank the doctors and contributors and we are sorry we could not tell their stories. The ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ will continue to cover events in Gaza impartially.