REVIEWING BBC NEWS WEBSITE COVERAGE OF PALESTINIAN AFFAIRS IN 2021

Our monthly summaries of BBC News website coverage of Israel and the Palestinians (see ‘related articles’ below) show that throughout 2021 audiences saw over eight times more coverage of internal Israeli affairs than they did of internal Palestinian affairs. Five of the year’s twelve months (January, May, October, November and December) saw no new reporting on Palestinian affairs whatsoever.

Of the sixteen reports published throughout the year (compared to 134 items concerning internal Israeli affairs), six concerned the Coronavirus pandemic:

Palestinians begin vaccinations after Israel provides doses (3/2/21)

Palestinian officials accuse Israel of blocking vaccine supply Tom Bateman (16/2/21) discussed here

First covid vaccines to enter Gaza strip Tom Bateman (17/2/21) discussed here

Vaccination programme begins in Gaza Strip (22/2/21)

Covid: Palestinians cancel vaccine swap deal with Israel (19/6/21) discussed here

Gaza’s top cleric warns against vaccine hesitancy Tom Bateman (19/8/21 to) discussed here

One was an obituary:

Mourid Barghouti: Leading Palestinian poet Mourid Barghouti dies aged 76 Sebastian Usher (14/2/21) discussed here

One report concerned a DJ:

Palestinian ‘Techno Queen’ Sama’ Abdulhadi faces court over shrine event Tom Bateman (2/3/21)

Just two items related to the scheduled – and later cancelled – Palestinian election:

Palestinian election: Leaders face reckoning as rare vote looms Tom Bateman (24/4/21) discussed here

Palestinian elections: Abbas postpones rare polls (30/4/21) discussed here

Six reports concerned the death of Nizar Banat:

Activist critical of Palestinian Authority dies after arrest (24/6/21)

Palestinian protests: Crowds clash with police after death of activist (27/6/21)

Nizar Banat: Palestinians turn on leaders after activist’s death Joel Greenberg BBC Monitoring (3/7/21)

Nizar Banat: Palestinian officers charged over activist’s death (6/9/21)

Nizar Banat: The death shaking the Palestinian leadership Yolande Knell (7/9/21) discussed here

Why Palestinians are protesting against their own government Anastassia Zlatopolskai (7/9/21)

Topics the BBC chose to ignore in 2021 include social issues, crime and violence, political arrests, elections for Hamas’ Gaza Strip political bureau, municipal elections, demolitions, death sentences issued by Hamas, tensions between the Palestinian Authority and Hamas and the PIJ, closures of universities and financial rewards for terrorism

As we have noted in the past, the BBC is one of the few Western media outlets to have a bureau in Gaza City in addition to its offices in Jerusalem and Ramallah. Nevertheless, stand-alone reports concerning internal Palestinian affairs which are not framed within the context of ‘the conflict’ and do not have an Israel-related component are sparse. 

The BBC continued to provide an airbrushed view of Palestinian society in 2021 with its audiences learning little about the social, political and economic issues affecting everyday life.

Related Articles:

REVIEWING BBC NEWS WEBSITE COVERAGE OF PALESTINIAN AFFAIRS IN 2020

REVIEWING BBC NEWS WEBSITE COVERAGE OF PALESTINIAN AFFAIRS IN 2019

SUMMARY OF BBC NEWS WEBSITE PORTRAYAL OF ISRAEL AND THE PALESTINIANS – JANUARY 2021

SUMMARY OF BBC NEWS WEBSITE PORTRAYAL OF ISRAEL AND THE PALESTINIANS – FEBRUARY 2021

SUMMARY OF BBC NEWS WEBSITE PORTRAYAL OF ISRAEL AND THE PALESTINIANS – MARCH 2021

SUMMARY OF BBC NEWS WEBSITE PORTRAYAL OF ISRAEL AND THE PALESTINIANS – APRIL 2021

SUMMARY OF BBC NEWS WEBSITE PORTRAYAL OF ISRAEL AND THE PALESTINIANS – MAY 2021

SUMMARY OF BBC NEWS WEBSITE PORTRAYAL OF ISRAEL AND THE PALESTINIANS – JUNE 2021

SUMMARY OF BBC NEWS WEBSITE PORTRAYAL OF ISRAEL AND THE PALESTINIANS – JULY 2021

SUMMARY OF BBC NEWS WEBSITE PORTRAYAL OF ISRAEL AND THE PALESTINIANS – AUGUST 2021

SUMMARY OF BBC NEWS WEBSITE PORTRAYAL OF ISRAEL AND THE PALESTINIANS – SEPTEMBER 2021

SUMMARY OF BBC NEWS WEBSITE PORTRAYAL OF ISRAEL AND THE PALESTINIANS – OCTOBER 2021

SUMMARY OF BBC NEWS WEBSITE PORTRAYAL OF ISRAEL AND THE PALESTINIANS – NOVEMBER 2021

SUMMARY OF BBC NEWS WEBSITE PORTRAYAL OF ISRAEL AND THE PALESTINIANS – DECEMBER 2021

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3 Comments

  1. says: Grimey

    The existence of the BBC’s working bureau in Gaza must be with the approval of Hamas – aka Iran’s puppets. So there is no doubt that their output also must have the approval of Iran. No surprise there, then !

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