Latest news with #BenDePear
Yahoo
04-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
BBC Drops ‘Gaza: Doctors Under Attack' Film As Producer Brands Director General A 'PR Person'
For the second time this year, the BBC has dropped a documentary film about the Israel-Hamas conflict, announcing that it will no longer move forward with Gaza: Doctors Under Attack. The BBC greenlit Doctors Under Attack last year from Basement Films, the production company run by former Channel 4 News editor Ben de Pear. More from Deadline International Insider: '28 Years Later' Arrives; Landmark Netflix-TF1 Deal; NHK At 100 BBC Hits AI Startup Perplexity With Legal Threat Over Content Scraping Concerns BBC's BAFTA-Winning Doc Series 'Once Upon A Time In...' Turns Eye To Middle East It was meant to spotlight the plight of medics in Gaza, but production was paused in April following the scandal over Gaza: How to Survive a Warzone, the HOYO Films doc that was found to have been narrated by the child of a Hamas minister. A BBC investigation into How to Survive a Warzone remains ongoing. Peter Johnston, the BBC's director of editorial complaints and reviews, is examining the failings that led to the film being broadcast. Now, the BBC has said it will not screen Doctors Under Attack, or carry any of its contents in news bulletins, after discussions with Basement 'reached the end of the road' on Thursday. In a lengthy statement, the BBC said: '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 BBC. 'Impartiality is a core principle of BBC 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.' The corporation continued: 'We want to thank the doctors and contributors and we are sorry we could not tell their stories. The BBC will continue to cover events in Gaza impartially.' In a statement, Basement Films claimed that the BBC had approved the film for broadcast and it was considered a 'vital piece of public service journalism.' 'They gave us no less than 6 different release dates, and it was subjected to a long and repeated compliance process as well as scrupulous fact checking,' Basement said. 'They then apologised and reversed their position and said that it would be subject to the recommendations of the Johnston report.' The company added: 'We are relieved that the BBC will finally allow this film to be released.' It is not clear what brought the talks between the BBC and Basement to a head. De Pear did, however, personally criticize BBC director-general Tim Davie on a public platform at the Sheffield DocFest on Thursday. He said Davie is 'just a PR person,' who has meddled in editorial decisions and is leading an organization that is 'failing' in its duty to report on the Gaza crisis properly. 'Something needs to happen because they are making decisions from a PR defensive point of view rather than a journalistic one. If you make a decision on a journalistic basis you can defend it, but if you make it on a PR basis, you can't,' de Pear said, per a report in Broadcast. The BBC said it spent weeks with de Pear attempting to get Gaza doctors' voices 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 [into How to Survive a Warzone] was published,' it said. The BBC added: 'Contrary to some reports, since we paused production of Gaza: Doctors Under Attack in April, it has not undergone the BBC's final pre-broadcast sign-off processes.' The BBC's coverage of the Gaza crisis has stoked strong feelings on both sides of the conflict, with How to Survive a Warzone illustrating the fraught nature of the debate. The UK's Jewish community was appalled that the BBC screened a film narrated by a boy with Hamas connections that were not declared to viewers. Others argued that the BBC's decision to pull How To Survive a Warzone was an act of 'censorship' that played into Israel's agenda. Best of Deadline A Full Timeline Of Blake Lively & Justin Baldoni's 'It Ends With Us' Feud In Court, Online & In The Media 'Poker Face' Season 2 Guest Stars: From Katie Holmes To Simon Hellberg The 25 Highest-Grossing Animated Films Of All Time At The Global Box Office
Arab News
03-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Arab News
Producer of dropped BBC Gaza documentary says broadcaster tried to gag him
LONDON: The executive producer of a shelved BBC documentary on Gaza has accused the corporation of attempting to silence him over its controversial decision to pull the film. Ben de Pear, former editor of Channel 4 News and executive producer of 'Gaza: Doctors Under Attack,' said he was repeatedly pressured to sign what he called a 'double gagging clause' that would have barred him and others from speaking about the BBC's decision to drop the film. 'I rejected and refused to sign the double gagging clause the BBC bosses tried multiple times to get me to sign,' de Pear wrote in a LinkedIn post. 'Not only could we have been sued for saying the BBC refused to air the film (palpably and provably true) but also if any other company had said it, the BBC could sue us. 'Not only could we not tell the truth that was already stated, but neither could others. Reader, I didn't sign it.' Describing the film's production as a 'painful journey,' de Pear previously accused Tim Davie, BBC's director general, of taking editorial decisions he was not qualified to make. 'All the decisions about our film were not taken by journalists, they were taken by Tim Davie,' he said at conference in Sheffield. 'He is just a PR person. Tim Davie is taking editorial decisions which, frankly, he is not capable of making.' He accused the BBC of 'failing as an institution,' calling for Davie and the corporation's senior leadership to step down. While the BBC has not officially responded, The Guardian reported that sources close to the matter denied the broadcaster tried to gag de Pear. One insider said the request was a standard clause requiring producers to seek BBC approval before promoting its content — a claim disputed by de Pear's company, Basement Films. The controversy comes amid broader criticism of the BBC's handling of Gaza-related coverage. This includes backlash over its decision to drop 'Gaza: Doctors Under Attack' because it 'risked creating a perception of partiality,' its refusal to broadcast a performance by Irish rap trio Kneecap — one member of whom faces terror charges — and its failure to interrupt the Glastonbury live feed featuring anti-Israel chants by punk-rap duo Bob Vylan. On Wednesday, over 400 media professionals — including 111 BBC journalists — signed an open letter accusing the BBC of acting as 'PR for the Israeli government' and calling for the removal of BBC board member Robbie Gibb, citing conflicts of interest and editorial bias. The letter also questioned Gibb's alleged role in the BBC's decision to drop the Gaza documentary. Before pulling 'Gaza: Doctors Under Attack' entirely, the BBC said it had delayed the film's broadcast pending a review of another program, 'Gaza: How to Survive a Warzone.' Channel 4 ultimately aired 'Gaza: Doctors Under Attack' on Wednesday night to critical acclaim.
The Guardian
03-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Gaza film's producer accuses BBC of trying to gag him over decision to drop it
The producer of a film about medics in Gaza that was dropped by the BBC has accused the corporation of attempting to gag him and others over its decision not to show the documentary. The programme, Gaza: Doctors under Attack, finally broadcast on Channel 4 on Wednesday night, recounts how hospitals in the territory have been overwhelmed, bombed and raided. Medics also recount being detained and make claims of being tortured. It had originally been due to run on the BBC. Ben de Pear, the programme's executive producer and a former Channel 4 News editor, has accused the BBC of attempting to stop him talking about its 'painful journey' to the screen with the use of legal gagging clauses. 'I rejected and refused to sign the double gagging clause the BBC bosses tried multiple times to get me to sign,' he said. 'Not only could we have been sued for saying the BBC refused to air the film (palpably and provably true) but also if any other company had said it, the BBC could sue us. 'Not only could we not tell the truth that was already stated, but neither could others. Reader, I didn't sign it.' Instead, he said, he spoke out, criticising the BBC's director general, Tim Davie, at a conference in Sheffield over the decision to pull the film. 'All the decisions about our film were not taken by journalists, they were taken by Tim Davie,' he said at the time. 'He is just a PR person. Tim Davie is taking editorial decisions which, frankly, he is not capable of making. 'The BBC's primary purpose is TV news and current affairs, and if it's failing on that it doesn't matter what drama it makes or sports it covers. It is failing as an institution. And if it's failing on that then it needs new management.' The BBC did not comment on his accusations. An insider said Basement Films, De Pear's production company, had only been asked to sign a standard clause obliging producers to have the corporation's permission before engaging in publicity around one of its shows. It is understood this is disputed by Basement Films. BBC sources suggested the broadcaster had been attempting to find ways to use the documentary material in news coverage, but a final decision was made to drop the film entirely after De Pear's public comments in Sheffield. This timeline is also disputed. Once the BBC handed control back to Basement Films, a BBC source said it ceased to be the broadcaster's film. They also argued it was untrue the BBC had tried to gag De Pear from speaking about the film, pointing to public statements he made about it. They also pointed to the BBC's public statement, made last month, clearly stating it had dropped the project. De Pear's comments follow the publication of a letter signed anonymously by more than 100 BBC staff criticising the decision to drop the film. The letter also questioned the role of Robbie Gibb, Theresa May's former spin doctor and a member of the BBC's board and editorial standards committee. Gibb led the consortium that bought the Jewish Chronicle in 2020 and, up until August 2024, was a director of Jewish Chronicle Media. The BBC has said he had no 'formal role' over the decisions made in relation to the Gaza film. Before dropping the medics documentary entirely, the BBC said it had delayed its broadcast until a report into the making of another documentary, Gaza: How to Survive a Warzone, had been completed. That programme was pulled from iPlayer earlier this year after it emerged that its 13-year-old narrator was the son of a Hamas official. The review into its production continues.
Yahoo
20-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
BBC Drops ‘Gaza: Doctors Under Attack' Film As Producer Brands Director General A 'PR Person'
For the second time this year, the BBC has dropped a documentary film about the Israel-Hamas conflict, announcing that it will no longer move forward with Gaza: Doctors Under Attack. The BBC greenlit Doctors Under Attack last year from Basement Films, the production company run by former Channel 4 News editor Ben de Pear. More from Deadline International Insider: '28 Years Later' Arrives; Landmark Netflix-TF1 Deal; NHK At 100 BBC Hits AI Startup Perplexity With Legal Threat Over Content Scraping Concerns BBC's BAFTA-Winning Doc Series 'Once Upon A Time In...' Turns Eye To Middle East It was meant to spotlight the plight of medics in Gaza, but production was paused in April following the scandal over Gaza: How to Survive a Warzone, the HOYO Films doc that was found to have been narrated by the child of a Hamas minister. A BBC investigation into How to Survive a Warzone remains ongoing. Peter Johnston, the BBC's director of editorial complaints and reviews, is examining the failings that led to the film being broadcast. Now, the BBC has said it will not screen Doctors Under Attack, or carry any of its contents in news bulletins, after discussions with Basement 'reached the end of the road' on Thursday. In a lengthy statement, the BBC said: '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 BBC. 'Impartiality is a core principle of BBC 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.' The corporation continued: 'We want to thank the doctors and contributors and we are sorry we could not tell their stories. The BBC will continue to cover events in Gaza impartially.' In a statement, Basement Films claimed that the BBC had approved the film for broadcast and it was considered a 'vital piece of public service journalism.' 'They gave us no less than 6 different release dates, and it was subjected to a long and repeated compliance process as well as scrupulous fact checking,' Basement said. 'They then apologised and reversed their position and said that it would be subject to the recommendations of the Johnston report.' The company added: 'We are relieved that the BBC will finally allow this film to be released.' View this post on Instagram A post shared by Basement Films (@basementfilms2) It is not clear what brought the talks between the BBC and Basement to a head. De Pear did, however, personally criticize BBC director-general Tim Davie on a public platform at the Sheffield DocFest on Thursday. He said Davie is 'just a PR person,' who has meddled in editorial decisions and is leading an organization that is 'failing' in its duty to report on the Gaza crisis properly. 'Something needs to happen because they are making decisions from a PR defensive point of view rather than a journalistic one. If you make a decision on a journalistic basis you can defend it, but if you make it on a PR basis, you can't,' de Pear said, per a report in Broadcast. The BBC said it spent weeks with de Pear attempting to get Gaza doctors' voices 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 [into How to Survive a Warzone] was published,' it said. The BBC added: 'Contrary to some reports, since we paused production of Gaza: Doctors Under Attack in April, it has not undergone the BBC's final pre-broadcast sign-off processes.' The BBC's coverage of the Gaza crisis has stoked strong feelings on both sides of the conflict, with How to Survive a Warzone illustrating the fraught nature of the debate. The UK's Jewish community was appalled that the BBC screened a film narrated by a boy with Hamas connections that were not declared to viewers. Others argued that the BBC's decision to pull How To Survive a Warzone was an act of 'censorship' that played into Israel's agenda. Best of Deadline 2025-26 Awards Season Calendar: Dates For Tonys, Emmys, Oscars & More 'Stick' Soundtrack: All The Songs You'll Hear In The Apple TV+ Golf Series 'Stick' Release Guide: When Do New Episodes Come Out?
BBC News
20-06-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
BBC pulls Gaza medics documentary due to impartiality concerns
The BBC says it has decided not to broadcast a documentary about doctors working in Gaza, due to impartiality concerns it has surrounding the Doctors Under Attack was commissioned by the BBC but produced by an independent production company. It was originally scheduled for broadcast in February, but has not yet aired on any BBC a statement, the BBC said it was "determined to report all aspects of the conflict in the Middle East impartially and fairly". BBC News has contacted production company Basement Films for comment. Its founder Ben de Pear said earlier this week the BBC had "utterly failed" and that journalists were "being stymied and silenced". The BBC said it was "transferring ownership of the film material to Basement Films".BBC News understands the decision to shelve the documentary was taken on Thursday, following public comments by De Pear at the Sheffield Documentary Festival, and another of the film's directors, journalist Ramita Navai, who appeared on Radio 4's Today programme discussing the war in Gaza.A different documentary, Gaza: How to Survive a Warzone, was pulled from iPlayer earlier this year after it emerged its 13-year-old narrator was the son of a Hamas official. Gaza: Doctors Under Attack - also known as Gaza: Medics Under Fire - is said to examine the experiences of Palestinian medics working during the war in film is directed by Karim Shah, Navai and De Pear, a former editor of Channel 4 News. In a statement on Friday, the BBC said it had commissioned the documentary over a year ago, but paused the 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 BBC has been working with Basement Films to find a way to tell the stories of these doctors on our platforms."Yesterday [Thursday], it 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 BBC."The corporation added that, contrary to some reports, the documentary had "not undergone the BBC's final pre-broadcast sign-off processes", adding: "Any film broadcast will not be a BBC film."It continued: "We want to thank the doctors and contributors and we are sorry we could not tell their stories. The BBC will continue to cover events in Gaza impartially." Speaking at the Sheffield Documentary Festival on Thursday, before the decision was announced, De Pear specifically blamed director general Tim Davie for refusing to air the film."All the decisions about our film were not taken by journalists, they were taken by Tim Davie," he claimed while taking part in a panel, as reported by Broadcast."He is just a PR person. Tim Davie is taking editorial decisions which, frankly, he is not capable of making."He added: "The BBC's primary purpose is TV news and current affairs, and if it's failing on that it doesn't matter what drama it makes or sports it covers. It is failing as an institution. And if it's failing on that then it needs new management."Something needs to happen because they are making decisions from a PR defensive point of view rather than a journalistic one. If you make a decision on a journalistic basis you can defend it, but if you make it on a PR basis, you can't."In relation to the war, De Pear claimed staff at the BBC "are being forced to use language they don't recognise, they are not describing something as it clearly is [for fear of impartiality] and it's tragic".Responding to De Pear's comments, a BBC spokesperson said the BBC "totally reject[s] this characterisation of our coverage"."The BBC has continually produced powerful journalism about this conflict. Alongside breaking news and ongoing analysis, we have produced original investigations such as those into allegations of abuse of Palestinian prisoners and Israel's use of bunker buster bombs and in-depth documentaries including the award-winning Life and Death in Gaza, and Gaza 101." High-profile figures such as actress Susan Sarandon and presenter Gary Lineker have previously accused the corporation of censorship over the open letter, which was also signed by cultural figures such as Dame Harriet Walter, Miriam Margolyes, Maxine Peake, Juliet Stevenson and Mike Leigh, said: "This is not editorial caution. It's political suppression.""No news organisation should quietly decide behind closed doors whose stories are worth telling," it continued. "This important film should be seen by the public, and its contributors' bravery honoured."
