“Nation shall speak peace unto nation.” The BBC adopted those words in 1927 as its motto, drawing on the prophecy in Zechariah, to capture an ideal: that broadcasting might soften borders, temper hatreds and elevate public discourse. Nearly a century on, the ambition remains noble.
In this light, BBC Arabic should be a jewel in the crown of the Corporation. Each week it reaches an audience of 40 million people across the Arabic-speaking world. The potential to promote peace, cohesion and values in the interest of the United Kingdom is incalculable.
Instead, all too often the Arabic service has been a platform for extremism and antisemitism, and particularly since October 7 has parroted lines that have served the interests of Hamas. This, surely, is where the wider workings of the Corporation could come to bear, to hold the BBC to its ideals and high editorial standards.
Instead, as the JC reports this week, the Executive Complaints Unit (ECU) which is meant to correct breaches of the rules, has virtually given a carte blanche to BBC Arabic bias.
When a BBC Arabic contributor described Israelis as “human fragments” and “occupation”, any reasonable observer would surely have recognised such language as dehumanising and unacceptable. Yet the ECU nonetheless ruled that no breach of editorial guidelines had occurred.
This is not an isolated lapse. Since October 7, 2023, the US-based watchdog CAMERA has lodged 38 appeals regarding BBC Arabic’s output. Only two have been upheld. This is not a run of bad luck. It’s a culture. The BBC’s global news director, Jonathan Munro has defended BBC Arabic by citing the ECU’s judgements. He has also celebrated the service as being “almost as trusted” as Al Jazeera. Many observers will be concerned that Munro is the most senior executive at BBC News, at least for now.
With BBC Arabic as part of the World Service sitting outside Ofcom’s remit for further appeal, the ECU’s judgment is effectively final. As former director of BBC Television Danny Cohen warns, this system is the corporation marking its own homework. That arrangement might command confidence if it consistently demonstrated rigour. It does not.
The BBC’s Charter falls due for renewal in less than two years. That process will invite searching scrutiny. If the corporation wishes to defend the scale and model of its public funding, it must demonstrate that its global services embody the principle engraved upon its coat of arms. “Nation shall speak peace unto nation” is a commitment that should remain at the heart of Britain’s public service broadcaster, both at home and abroad. An overhaul of the internal complaints unit is in the interests of the BBC, and one that should be adopted by choice. Otherwise, it must be compelled as a condition of Charter renewal.
To get more from opinion, click here to sign up for our free Editor's Picks newsletter.