UK media regulator Ofcom has declared Russian news channel RT, an AIB Member, to be in violation of its regulations, accusing the broadcaster of bias in its coverage of the Ukraine crisis.
Ofcom’s reprimand comes just two weeks after RT’s launch of its new British news channel, RT UK. Ofcom has summoned representatives from RT to a meeting to discuss the issue the issue further.
The Ofcom report outlined four incidents in early March 2014 in which it found RT’s reporting of the civil strife in Ukraine to be insufficiently impartial. Ofcom declared the Russian broadcaster was in breach of Ofcom’s Rules 5.1, 5.11 and 5.12:
- Rule 5.1: “News, in whatever form, must be reported with due accuracy and presented with due impartiality”.
- Rule 5.11: “In addition to the rules above, due impartiality must be preserved on matters of major political and industrial controversy and major matters relating to current public policy by the person providing a service (listed above) in each programme or in clearly linked and timely programmes”.
- Rule 5.12: “In dealing with matters of major political and industrial controversy and major matters relating to current public policy an appropriately wide range of significant views must be included and given due weight in each programme or in clearly linked and timely programmes. Views and facts must not be misrepresented”.
In the report’s concluding remarks, Ofcom said:
Ofcom emphasises that there is no requirement on broadcasters to provide an alternative viewpoint on all news stories or issues in the news, or to do so in all individual news items or programmes. It is also legitimate for news on a licensed service to be presented in broad terms from the viewpoint of a particular nation-state. We recognise that TV Novosti, providing a service with a Russian background, will want to present the news from a Russian perspective. However, all news must be presented with due impartiality: that is with impartiality adequate or appropriate to the subject and nature of the programme. In particular, when reporting on matters of major political or industrial controversy and major matters relating to current public policy in news programmes, broadcasters must ensure that they reflect an appropriately wide range of significant views and give those views due weight. Presenting news stories with due impartiality in news programmes very much depends on editorial discretion being exercised appropriately in all the circumstances.
In the same report Ofcom also cited a breach of rules by BBC Radio 1 for interviewing an alleged Islamic State fighter on its Newsbeat programme on 13 June. Ofcom considered the story inappropriate for Newsbeat’s youthful demographic.
Ofcom’s report, which includes lengthy analysis of both cases, can be read here.