A group of MPs has warned that the BBC’s “pessimistic and skewed” Brexit coverage is at risk of damaging Britain,
Around 70 MPs from a number of political parties have written to the Director General of the BBC, Lord Hall with accusations the public service broadcaster is unwilling to snap out of its “pre-referendum pessimism” and that it refuses to “accept new facts”.
The complaint was signed by 60 Conservative MPs, including former cabinet ministers Iain Duncan Smith and Theresa Villers, 2 Tory peers, 3 Labour MPs, 8 DUP MPs, 2 DUP peers and UKIPs only MP Douglas Carswell.
The backlash comes after months of growing disillusionment regarding the BBC’s warped coverage, following the democratic vote and will of the people to leave the struggling EU.
The letter added that the BBC has become “partisan” and has fallen “far short” of providing balanced coverage. It issued a veiled threat that “if politicians and the public don’t view it as an impartial broker, then the future of the BBC will be in doubt”.
The complaint added: “We know many Leave-voting constituencies have felt their views have been unfairly represented.
“This phenomenon is weakening the BBC’s bond with the 52% who voted Leave and all who wish to make a success of the decision made. The BBC has a much larger market share than any newspaper, it runs the most-used news website in the country, on top of its television and radio coverage.”
It continued: “This, as well as viewers’ belief in its neutrality, means that BBC bias can have a substantial effect on the national debate.
“BBC coverage also shapes international perceptions of the UK; we fear that, by misrepresenting our country either as xenophobic or regretful of the Leave vote, the BBC will undermine our efforts to carve out a new, global role for this country.
“We are therefore asking you to take steps to correct these flaws in the BBC’s coverage of our EU exit at the earliest moment.”
A BBC spokeswoman said: “The BBC is covering the political and financial events following the referendum vote in a responsible and impartial way. The BBC is also one of the great exports of this country and makes a significant contribution to the UK creative sector.”
“The BNP has said for years that BBC news is bias. The way they choose to twist it and how they refuse to present facts about the news that really matters to hard-working people is very worrying indeed.
What is also of great concern is the news they choose not to report. They seem very good at hiding national and international events that do not match their agenda. One could argue that the news they present is so twisted, it does not give the viewer a true picture of what is happening in the world in which they live”, commented BNP Chairman Adam Walker.
The BNP does not believe the BBC is value for money; it has been proven time and time again that it is not impartial and we would scrap the hideously unfair license fee immediately.
