Following the broadcast of Bob Vylan’s controversial Glastonbury set, the BBC has instructed a select group of senior staff to temporarily withdraw from their routine responsibilities within the music and live events departments.
The punk duo’s performance, streamed live on iPlayer, included a chant of “death, death to the IDF [Israel Defence Forces]” and other remarks deemed derogatory.
The BBC stated that antisemitism has “no place” in its content and that measures are being taken to “ensure proper accountability for those found to be responsible” for the broadcast.
The broadcaster also revealed that Bob Vylan was one of seven Glastonbury acts identified as “high risk” prior to the festival.
The BBC announced “immediate changes to livestreaming music events,” stipulating that “any music performances deemed high risk by the BBC will now not be broadcast live or streamed live” in the future.
BBC Chair Samir Shah described the decision not to halt the live feed as “unquestionably an error of judgement.”
Earlier in the week, Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy expressed dissatisfaction with the BBC’s response in the House of Commons, raising concerns about due diligence, senior oversight, and the delay in terminating the live feed.
“Given the seriousness of what happened, and particularly we heard in the House the absolute shocking stories of the impact this has had on the Jewish community in this country – given the seriousness of this, I would expect there to be accountability at the highest levels [of the BBC],” she said.
The BBC has also faced criticism from Chief Rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis, while media regulator Ofcom has indicated that the corporation has “questions to answer.”
During their Glastonbury performance, Bob Vylan’s vocalist Pascal Robinson-Foster, known as Bobby Vylan, also referenced a former record label executive.
The musician claimed that this executive, who “speak[s] very strongly about his support for Israel,” had endorsed a letter urging Glastonbury organizers to cancel Irish-language rap trio Kneecap’s performance.
“Who do I see on that list of names but that bald-headed [expletive] I used to work for. We’ve done it all, all right? From working in bars to working for [expletive] Zionists.”
In a message to staff, Director General Tim Davie stated, “I deeply regret that such offensive and deplorable behaviour appeared on the BBC and want to say sorry – to our audience and to all of you, but in particular to Jewish colleagues and the Jewish community.”
The BBC maintains that Bob Vylan was designated high risk following a standard risk assessment procedure applied to all Glastonbury performers.
The duo, alongside six other acts, were categorized as such, but the BBC stated that they “were all deemed suitable for live streaming with appropriate mitigations.”
The statement further explained, “Prior to Glastonbury, a decision was taken that compliance risks could be mitigated in real time on the live stream – through the use of language or content warnings – without the need for a delay. This was clearly not the case.”
The BBC acknowledged that the live stream was monitored “in line with the agreed compliance protocols and a number of issues were escalated.”
Warnings were displayed on the stream on two occasions, but the BBC added, “The editorial team took the decision not to cut the feed. This was an error.”
Davie, who was present at Glastonbury on the day, “was subsequently made aware of what had happened and instructed the team that none of the performance should feature in further coverage.”
The BBC stated that the team on duty prioritized preventing the performance from being available on demand, ensuring that the set would not appear separately on iPlayer or BBC Sounds.
However, the live feed remained accessible for over four hours, allowing viewers to rewind and view the content.
“Given the failings that have been acknowledged, we are taking actions to ensure proper accountability for those found to be responsible for those failings in the live broadcast,” the BBC said. “We will not comment further on those processes at this time.”
In a statement, Shah apologized “to all our viewers and listeners and particularly the Jewish community for allowing the ‘artist’ Bob Vylan to express unconscionable anti-semitic views live on the BBC.”
“This was unquestionably an error of judgement,” he added. “I was very pleased to note that as soon as this came to the notice of Tim Davie – who was on the Glastonbury site at the time visiting BBC staff – he took immediate action and instructed the team to withdraw the performance from on demand coverage.”
Since Glastonbury, Bob Vylan have had several bookings cancelled, including festival appearances in Manchester and France and a slot in Germany.
In response to the cancellations, the band reiterated their position, stating, “Silence is not an option. We will be fine, the people of Palestine are hurting.”
Avon and Somerset Police have initiated a criminal investigation into their Glastonbury comments.
On Wednesday, London’s Metropolitan Police announced that the band is also under investigation for comments allegedly made during a concert at Alexandra Palace in May.
Following media coverage of their statements, Bob Vylan issued a statement on Tuesday: “We are not for the death of Jews, Arabs or any other race or group of people. We are for the dismantling of a violent military machine.”
They added that “we, like those in the spotlight before us, are not the story. We are a distraction from the story, and whatever sanctions we receive will be a distraction.”