Jews, antisemitism and Labour – a letter to the BBC
Fri 6 Dec 2019
5th December 2019
To Tony Hall, Director General of the BBC
cc: Fran Unsworth and Tracey Henry
URGENT – “Is the BBC Antisemitic?”
We need to register with you our deep concern that, once again, and in the closing stages of an acrimonious election campaign, the BBC’s coverage of antisemitism charges against the Labour Party has been both unbalanced and uncritical. Your reporting today of the Jewish Labour Movement (JLM)’s repetition of its flimsily-based charges against the Party that it used to support falls disastrously short of the Corporation’s own formal standards of accuracy and balance.
This represents what we can only call a flagrant breach, and of all times during a general election campaign, of the BBC’s legal commitment to due impartiality and fairness.
Over recent months, and with no remission during the election campaign, coverage of allegations of Labour antisemitism has featured repeatedly in the BBC News, and often as the lead item. In news programmes the allegations have been reported as quasi-factual, with no indication that they are fiercely contested. In more discursive formats such as the Today programme or Newsnight, presenters have consistently adopted a negative, attacking stance towards anyone who questions the basis of the allegations. In complete contrast, those making the allegations, usually based on hearsay rather than personal experience, are supplied with leading questions and softball follow-up.
Jews are as diverse as any other substantial group in society. Yet people whose representative status is highly doubtful are routinely presented by the BBC as ‘representatives of the Jewish community’. Surely you can ensure that your broadcasting staff know the facts and convey them appropriately. The Board of Deputies, for example, has no supervised electoral process – and in any case its synagogue-based membership covers no more than one third of the UK’s Jewish population. Secular Jews make up at least 50% of British Jews and have no voice through the Board of Deputies.
In particular the voices of the large numbers of Jews who are Party members, who know how atypical the quite rare examples of antisemitic behaviour in the party are, and who are enthusiastic supporters of a Corbyn-led Labour government have been almost entirely ignored. The BBC has allowed itself to be used as a megaphone for deeply contested charges.
The BBC’s Guidelines state that when a partisan political position is put forward, an opposing one, if it exists, should be broadcast too. The Labour Party does have many Jews who support it and who are prepared to speak out, notably in the organisation Jewish Voice for Labour. Our many requests to be able to present our experience and our perspective are routinely ignored, and in the rare exceptions have never been given equal weighting with the negative voices.
The BBC’s coverage of the JLM’s release of its evidence to the Equalities and Human Rights Commission’s inquiry (into any discrimination in Labour’s processes for handling complaints of antisemitism) is a prime example of the BBC’s systematic imbalance. This deliberately-timed attempted destabilisation of the Labour Party’s position by JLM has appeared in virtually every main news bulletin today, including live coverage – uncontested – of the JLM news conference on BBC News Channel.
The evidence that Jewish Voice for Labour gave to the EHRC inquiry was made public at the time and is publicly available on our web-site. This evidence is directly relevant to your news item but was not even mentioned in today’s extended BBC coverage. It seems that the BBC is treating us as the ‘wrong sort of Jew’.
All Jews are not the same. Asserting that they are is an aspect of antisemitism. The BBC should be ashamed of its record in openness to the multiple voices of British jewry.
By behaving in the way that it has (and today’s JLM coverage is only the latest example) the BBC has, constructively, been contributing to an assiduously promoted anti-Labour agenda.
We look forward to immediate corrective action.
This letter will be published on our website.
Sincerely,
Leah Levane and Jenny Manson, co-chairs JVL
www.jewishvoiceforlabour.org.uk/statement/jews-antisemitism-and-labour-a-letter-to-the-bbc/?fbclid=IwAR2bbSO7bduF2zsmKI_Ok27_0d5kKQ16CTVo9kiAZAQuG34ek4L1AAHnoP8
shelmiss what is it that is frightening your family if labour get in?
I’m really not going to get into it as I don’t want each and every point I make to be attacked, I’ve seen this on practically each and every thread regarding politics etc on this site.
I just wanted to point out that not every Jew is happy with Labour. I’ve not met one yet.
shelmiss please answer my question, I really am interested in knowing what you family fear from a Corbyn Government? Only I have wracked my brains and can’t think what a Labour Government will do that threatens the U.K. Jewish population.
Shalmiss Here is a Jewish professor who answers your point.
www.facebook.com/Progressive-Politics-229826284375617/?_tn_=kCH-R&eid=ARD
I have noticed that all the people who agree with the smears are giving generalised opinions and people who are challenging them are posting facts or more detailed opinions that never result in direct responses.
The "audience selector" on QT may be a Tory party member now, but she was previously in UKIP and has "liked" and retweeted vile statements by Tommy Robinson and the BNP.
The BBC have relentlessly promoted Farage, inviting him onto the QT panel no less than 29 times in the years leading up to the fraudulent referendum. The only other MEP ever invited was Tory Daniel Hannan, who appeared once.
Leah I couldn’t agree more. The BBC news and current affairs dept has been run by a friend of Boris and JRM for some time. The woman that chooses guests for Question Time is a Tory Party member and has used plants in the audience...one member of the audience, a vicar, was in fact an actor who had been on question time half a dozen times, not exactly balanced. Delighted that so many organisations are now recognising the state of Palestine and Netanyahu has been accused, rightly of ethnic cleansing. There is a huge difference between Jewish folk and Zionists....
shelmiss what is it that is frightening your family if labour get in?
Correction - the six people who have been convicted of making anti-semitic threats directed at Luciana Berger.
I'm not Jewish, although interested and concerned, so I've tried to find out some facts.
My understanding is that the six (?) people who have made anti-Semitic threats directed at Luciana Berger have all been members of far right/neo Nazi groups with no connection to the Labour party.
I also understand that Margaret Hodge made 200 complaints about anti-semiticism, but 90% of them were found to have nothing to do with people who had ever been members of the Labour party.
However, a group of Orthodox Charedi Jews has made a complaint about Margaret Hodge to the Labour Party for an anti-Semitic tweet. Apparently, she tweeted a picture of Corbyn meeting with a member of the Charedi community and commented that Charedis aren't "mainstream" Jews.
I'm confused.
Shelmiss That is sad but unfortunately propaganda works. They obviously have no genuine reason to be scared of a Labour government. It is the far right (as always) that is to be feared if anyone is.
Fear is easily invoked and difficult to calm. It is disgraceful that it should be used for political gain.
I am Jewish and am part of a large Jewish family and Jewish community. Not one of them has said they are voting Labour. Not one.
I am not speaking for the whole of the Jewish community in the UK, yet amongst the ones I have spoken to (a lot) - people are scared of what may happen under a Labour government.
Anniebach If people posting on twitter and facebook cannot be identified, how can it be known which party they belong to?
There was a conviction of a troll who had sent anti-semitic messages to Luciana Berger. She had loudly proclaimed the messages to be from a Labour member.
In fact they were from John Nimmo a typical middle aged overweight white incel typing in his mother's basement who had nothing to do with the Labour party at all. The allegations were of course widely reported as a criticism of the Labour Party. The fact that it was nothing to do with the party was barely reported at all - but Berger did not withdraw her false allegation.
It should not be a left or right issue and we should all speak out against obvious smears and propoganda. I have criticised people repeating the Cameron/dead pig smear and there are people on the right who criticise the propaganda against Corbyn.
The commentator Peter Hitchens cannot be considered anything but right wing but he has said about the coverage of Labour and Corbyn
"A country where the media attack the opposition rather than the government is a country where freedom is under threat".
Peter Oborne, who again, no one can seriously consider anything other than right wing, has also spoken out
www.opendemocracy.net/en/opendemocracyuk/british-journalists-have-become-part-of-johnsons-fake-news-machine/
It does not do democracy any favours to accept dishonest reporting if it is against someone that you don't like. Facts matter.
"
Are those who post on the likes of twitter and Facebook easily tracked down?
Of course, Annie. No problem at all. They just ask you and you tell them it's all Corbyn's fault and they would believe you straight away. After all, you have never needed any evidence on here just any chance to give the man a tongue lashing.
Some are, but in any case it is against most social media site rules to permit the posting of hate speech so in theory any anti-semitic remarks should be taken down immediately.
I am not sure but I thought the person receiving hate comments is to report it to the police with the name of the person they are accusing.
Are those who post on the likes of twitter and Facebook easily tracked down ?
What I can’t understand is that assuming hate is a crime why isn’t there prosecutions, I mean mail is evidence, phones can record spoken word. So why aren’t people being prosecuted?
My Jewish friends, who vote Labour, say that anti-semitism is to be found everywhere. They see the accusations against the Labour Party as just mud-slinging smear campaigns by the Tories.
Thank you for that. It doesn't surprise me in the slightest.
growstuff The Jewish Chronicle had a circulation in 2018 of 20,141 of which 7,298 where free copies - so it sold less than 13,000 and has reduced circulation since then. The editor used to be a contributor to the Daily Mail and the Spectator.
A ridiculous amount of influence granted by the media for such a small right wing publication.
Thank you for the stats Jaycee. I'm afraid I was too lazy to look them up, but you've confirmed the point I was trying to make. I have friends who are Reform Jews. Most support Labour and are incensed by the Chief Rabbi's statement and much that is written in the Jewish Chronicle.
My understanding of their view is that he is perfectly entitled to his opinions, just as any other conservative is. They're angry he is described as the spiritual leader of all British Jews and that he should have been involved in party politics in the first place.
Racists of all stripes among both liberals and conservatives in the US, though liberals are often more subtle about it in their personal lives. Do Unto Others....would be well to remember more often.
growstuff
The Chief Rabbi does not represent
i) Jews who do not belong to a synagogue - believed to be 50% of UK Jews
ii) the reform group - estimated to be 19% of those who go to Synagogue
iii) the liberal branch - represented by Rabbi Danny Rich who is a Corbyn supporter - 8% of Jews who go to Synagogue.
Of course people may think differently whether they are represented by him or not, but at most he technicall represents about 35% of British Jews. Whether he is saying what they believe cannot be known.
The Chief Rabbi is a close friend of both Boris Johnson and Netanyahu and there are many photographs of him at meetings with Tory cabinet meetings.
It sometimes seems to be believed that if someone is religious, their words should be taken more seriously than those of others and should not be scrutinised.
yes, just like Christians, and just like Muslims.
You could be right trisher. People post as though "Jews" are a homogenous group with the same beliefs, politics and backgrounds, thus reinforcing stereotypes.
In reality, Jews come in sorts of shapes and sizes. There's a range of beliefs within Judaism itself and many people self-identify as secular Jews. The Chief Rabbi isn't the "Leader of the Jews" in the UK, nor is the Jewish Chronicle the only newspaper which speaks for all Jews.
Strange isn't it GagaJo that none of that information is ever used by the MSM.
And the perpetual posts on GN saying that those who recognise that Corbyn has never been anti-semitic are somehow unthinking disciples are ridiculous. It requires evidence to prove anti-semitism and not just blind accusations.
I do worry that this politicising of the matter might result in more recruits to anti-semitism.
fennel that’s why we must fight to stop it being weaponised.
It is an insidious hate filled way of doing politics, and I will never support it.
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