Newsletters
The documentary "Gaza: Doctors Under Attack" won the Current Affairs prize at the Bafta TV Awards on Sunday, renewing a public dispute between the film's producers and the BBC, which had refused to air it after commissioning it.
The award was given at London's Royal Festival Hall, almost a year after the BBC first commissioned and then canceled the documentary. The film focuses on firsthand stories from Palestinian health workers in Gaza. Channel 4 later bought the film and aired it in July last year.
In their acceptance speeches, executive producer Ben de Pear and journalist Ramita Navai spoke about the BBC's decision not to air the film. De Pear mentioned that the Bafta ceremony aired on BBC One with a delay of over two hours and wondered whether the network would also remove his comments from the broadcast. The BBC reportedly edited some parts of Navai's speech after consulting its compliance team.
In her speech, Navai said the documentary's findings about attacks on Gaza's health care system were evidence that the BBC had funded it but decided not to share with the public.
She claimed that over 1,700 Palestinian doctors and health care workers had been killed, and more than 400 were detained. She dedicated the award to Palestinian medical workers held in Israeli detention centers.
The BBC first commissioned the film from Basement Films, an independent production company. The release was delayed while the BBC reviewed another Gaza-related documentary, "Gaza: How To Survive a War Zone."
In the end, the BBC chose not to air "Gaza: Doctors Under Attack," saying the film might seem biased and would not meet the public's expectations. The BBC also said that impartiality is a core value for BBC News. The film's Bafta win brought new attention to the BBC's editorial choices about Gaza-related content.
After the ceremony, while talking to reporters backstage, de Pear thanked Gazan journalists Jaber Badwan and Osana Al Ashi for providing footage from inside Gaza.
He said the team followed daily news from Gaza, not knowing if the two local journalists were still alive.
The documentary's path from a BBC commission to a Channel 4 broadcast and finally to a Bafta win has sparked discussion among media observers about editorial independence and the limits of impartiality for public broadcasters during active conflicts.
The BBC has not responded publicly to the filmmakers' comments at the ceremony.
Set as preferred source
Set as preferred source
1 min read
