Difference between revisions of "BBC Watch"

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'''bbcwatch''' was an organisation set up to pressurise the [[BBC]] into producing news coverage more favourable to Israel. It was owned and run by [[Trevor Asserson]], <Ref>Companies House, BBCWatch Ltd Annual Returns made up to 19 February 2005</ref> an English solicitor now based in Israel. According to ''The Lawyer'' his Jerusalam based law firm [[Asserson Law]] is the first UK law firm based in another country. <ref>Tom Phillips, '[http://www.thelawyer.com/firm-profile-asserson-law/1000075.article Firm Profile: Asserson Law]', ''The Lawyer'', 23 March 2009</ref>  
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'''bbcwatch''' is an organisation set up to pressurise the [[BBC]] into producing news coverage more favourable to Israel. It is owned and run by [[Trevor Asserson]], <Ref>Companies House, BBCWatch Ltd Annual Returns made up to 19 February 2005</ref> an English solicitor now based in Israel. According to ''The Lawyer'' his Jerusalam based law firm [[Asserson Law]] is the first UK law firm based in another country. <ref>Tom Phillips, '[http://www.thelawyer.com/firm-profile-asserson-law/1000075.article Firm Profile: Asserson Law]', ''The Lawyer'', 23 March 2009</ref> Other named individuals involved in the operation include [[Elisheva Mironi]], <ref>bbcwatch, '[http://www.bbcwatch.com/Reports/Report_1.pdf The BBC and the Middle East - a Critical Study]', March 2002</ref> [[Lee Kern]], <ref>bbcwatch, '[http://www.bbcwatch.com/Reports/Report_3.pdf The BBC and the War on Iraq - An Analysis]', June 2003</ref> [[Michael Paluch]], [[Deena Pinson]], <ref>bbcwatch, '[http://www.bbcwatch.com/Reports/Report_6_short.pdf The BBC Goes Native - An Analysis of BBC Arabic]', March 2008</ref> [[Ariella Kalms]] and [[Robin Stamler]]. <ref>bbcwatch, 'Jeremy Bowen and teh Gaza Conflict', December 2009</ref>
  
According to its own account bbcwatch was established in 2000, but it did not produce its first report until March 2002. <ref>bbcwatch, '[http://www.bbcwatch.com/Reports/Report_1.pdf The BBC and the Middle East - a Critical Study]', March 2002</ref> It was incorporated as a UK limited company in February 2004 and dissolved in November 2007. According to its only accounts filed the issue of shares to [[Trevor Asserson]] was the company's only transaction. <ref>Companies House, BBCWatch Accounts made up to 28 February 2005</ref>
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According to its own account bbcwatch was established in 2000, <ref>[[Media:Bbcwatch.pdf|PDF]] of <http://www.bbcwatch.com> created 19 March 2010</ref> but it did not produce its first report until March 2002. <ref>bbcwatch, '[http://www.bbcwatch.com/Reports/Report_1.pdf The BBC and the Middle East - a Critical Study]', March 2002</ref> It was incorporated as a UK limited company in February 2004 and dissolved in November 2007. According to its only accounts filed the issue of shares to [[Trevor Asserson]] was the company's only transaction. <ref>Companies House, BBCWatch Accounts made up to 28 February 2005</ref> Whilst the company BBCWatch Ltd has been dissolved, the organisation continues to produce reports attacking BBC reporting.
  
 
bbcwatch produced a number of reports detailing [[BBC]] output and incidents or trends evidencing a perceived bias. For example the organisation's first report, entitled 'The BBC and the Middle East - a Critical Study', argued amongst other things that the BBC should use the perjorative term 'terrorism' to describe Hamas; that the West Bank and Gaza should not be described as ‘occupied Palestinian Land’ or ‘occupied Palestinian territories’ since it suggests that there previously existed an 'autonomous sovereign Palestinian territory';  that Yasser Arafat should not be described as President or Presidential; and that the illegal settlements in the West Bank and Gaza should not be described as being 'illeged' but instead referred to as settlements in 'disputed territories'. <ref>bbcwatch, '[http://www.bbcwatch.com/Reports/Report_1.pdf The BBC and the Middle East - a Critical Study]', March 2002</ref>
 
bbcwatch produced a number of reports detailing [[BBC]] output and incidents or trends evidencing a perceived bias. For example the organisation's first report, entitled 'The BBC and the Middle East - a Critical Study', argued amongst other things that the BBC should use the perjorative term 'terrorism' to describe Hamas; that the West Bank and Gaza should not be described as ‘occupied Palestinian Land’ or ‘occupied Palestinian territories’ since it suggests that there previously existed an 'autonomous sovereign Palestinian territory';  that Yasser Arafat should not be described as President or Presidential; and that the illegal settlements in the West Bank and Gaza should not be described as being 'illeged' but instead referred to as settlements in 'disputed territories'. <ref>bbcwatch, '[http://www.bbcwatch.com/Reports/Report_1.pdf The BBC and the Middle East - a Critical Study]', March 2002</ref>

Revision as of 08:47, 19 March 2010

bbcwatch is an organisation set up to pressurise the BBC into producing news coverage more favourable to Israel. It is owned and run by Trevor Asserson, [1] an English solicitor now based in Israel. According to The Lawyer his Jerusalam based law firm Asserson Law is the first UK law firm based in another country. [2] Other named individuals involved in the operation include Elisheva Mironi, [3] Lee Kern, [4] Michael Paluch, Deena Pinson, [5] Ariella Kalms and Robin Stamler. [6]

According to its own account bbcwatch was established in 2000, [7] but it did not produce its first report until March 2002. [8] It was incorporated as a UK limited company in February 2004 and dissolved in November 2007. According to its only accounts filed the issue of shares to Trevor Asserson was the company's only transaction. [9] Whilst the company BBCWatch Ltd has been dissolved, the organisation continues to produce reports attacking BBC reporting.

bbcwatch produced a number of reports detailing BBC output and incidents or trends evidencing a perceived bias. For example the organisation's first report, entitled 'The BBC and the Middle East - a Critical Study', argued amongst other things that the BBC should use the perjorative term 'terrorism' to describe Hamas; that the West Bank and Gaza should not be described as ‘occupied Palestinian Land’ or ‘occupied Palestinian territories’ since it suggests that there previously existed an 'autonomous sovereign Palestinian territory'; that Yasser Arafat should not be described as President or Presidential; and that the illegal settlements in the West Bank and Gaza should not be described as being 'illeged' but instead referred to as settlements in 'disputed territories'. [10]

Notes

  1. Companies House, BBCWatch Ltd Annual Returns made up to 19 February 2005
  2. Tom Phillips, 'Firm Profile: Asserson Law', The Lawyer, 23 March 2009
  3. bbcwatch, 'The BBC and the Middle East - a Critical Study', March 2002
  4. bbcwatch, 'The BBC and the War on Iraq - An Analysis', June 2003
  5. bbcwatch, 'The BBC Goes Native - An Analysis of BBC Arabic', March 2008
  6. bbcwatch, 'Jeremy Bowen and teh Gaza Conflict', December 2009
  7. PDF of <http://www.bbcwatch.com> created 19 March 2010
  8. bbcwatch, 'The BBC and the Middle East - a Critical Study', March 2002
  9. Companies House, BBCWatch Accounts made up to 28 February 2005
  10. bbcwatch, 'The BBC and the Middle East - a Critical Study', March 2002