Broadcasting watchdog Ofcom has blasted the BBC for “serious editorial misjudgment” over its coverage of an antisemitic attack on Jewish students last December.

The incident, in which video footage showed Jewish students subjected to antisemitic abuse on Oxford Street, went viral last year. The BBC incorrectly reported that “some racial slurs about Muslims can also be heard”. 

They failed to correct the online article for eight weeks, even after those on the bus stated no such “slurs” were made.

Now Ofcom has slapped the BBC on the wrist for the report – although they stopped short of claiming it was a breach of the Broadcasting Code…

“…in our view, the BBC made a serious editorial misjudgment by not reporting on air at any point that the claim it had made in the news broadcast was disputed, once the new evidence emerged. This was particularly the case given that the BBC was aware that its news broadcast and online article were causing significant distress and anxiety to the victims of the attack, and to the wider Jewish community. This, in our opinion, was a significant failure to observe its editorial guidelines to report news with due accuracy and due impartiality.

Despite the “contextual factors” around the TV broadcast that stopped it constituting a full breach, Ofcom warned they will “review how the BBC has addressed the complaints handling and transparency issues raised by this case“. Watch this space… 

Read the full investigation below…