{"id":13229,"date":"2026-02-23T23:24:51","date_gmt":"2026-02-23T23:24:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/?p=13229"},"modified":"2026-02-23T23:24:51","modified_gmt":"2026-02-23T23:24:51","slug":"bbc-criticised-for-nixing-free-palestine-tribute-from-bafta-coverage-israel-palestine-conflict-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/?p=13229","title":{"rendered":"BBC criticised for nixing \u2018Free Palestine\u2019 tribute from BAFTA coverage | Israel-Palestine conflict News"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"\">\n<p class=\"article__subhead\"><em>Part of award-winning filmmaker Akinola Davies Jr\u2019s speech in which he says \u2018Free Palestine\u2019 was not aired.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div><button class=\"article-listen-container\" aria-labelledby=\"listen-text listen-duration\" data-testid=\"listen-to-article-button\"><\/p>\n<p><span class=\"article-listen-container__text\" data-testid=\"listen-to-article-text\">Listen to this article<\/span><span aria-hidden=\"true\">\u00a0|\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"article-listen-container__duration\">3 mins<\/span><\/p>\n<p><\/button><button tabindex=\"0\" class=\"tooltip-accessible_trigger\"><svg class=\"icon icon--info icon--main-grey-dark icon--16 listen-to-article-tooltip__icon\" viewbox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.1\" aria-hidden=\"true\" role=\"presentation\"><title>info<\/title><path class=\"icon-main-color\" d=\"M12 0a12 12 0 1 0 0 24 12 12 0 0 0 0-24Zm-.226 3.225a2.039 2.039 0 0 1 2.155 1.924v.193a1.998 1.998 0 0 1-2.155 2.149 2.029 2.029 0 0 1-2.146-2.15 2.039 2.039 0 0 1 1.955-2.122h.193l-.002.006Zm3.227 15.525a.75.75 0 0 1-.752.75H9.75a.75.75 0 0 1-.75-.75v-1.5a.75.75 0 0 1 .752-.75h.748V12h-.75a.75.75 0 0 1-.75-.75v-1.5a.75.75 0 0 1 .752-.751h3a.75.75 0 0 1 .75.752v6.75h.75a.75.75 0 0 1 .75.749L15 18.75Z\"\/><\/svg><\/button><\/div>\n<div aria-live=\"polite\" aria-atomic=\"true\">\n<p>The BBC is facing backlash for editing out a section of its coverage of the British Academy Film Awards (BAFTAs) in which prize-winning filmmaker Akinola Davies Jr says, \u201cFree Palestine\u201d, even while a racial slur remained audible in the same programme.<\/p>\n<p>Davies Jr, who was awarded outstanding debut by a British writer, director or producer for his film My Father\u2019s Shadow, ended his acceptance speech on Sunday with words of solidarity to \u201cthose under occupation, dictatorship, persecution and those experiencing genocide\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTo those watching at home, archive your loved ones, archive your stories yesterday, today and forever. For Nigeria, for London, Congo, Sudan, Free Palestine,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>The remarks were absent when the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) aired the event on a two-hour delay, prompting accusations of censorship from some viewers and advocacy groups.<\/p>\n<p>Rights group Amnesty International\u2019s United Kingdom chapter described the move to cut the speech as \u201cshameful\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThank you Akinola Davies Jr for using your platform to speak out for the rights of migrants and people facing and fleeing from persecution and mass atrocities \u2013 from the Congo to Sudan to Palestine,\u201d said Amnesty UK.<\/p>\n<p>The controversy was further amplified after a racial slur was heard during a separate segment of the broadcast. The offensive language was shouted by someone in the audience while Michael B Jordan and Delroy Lindo read out an award for best visual effects.<\/p>\n<p>The event\u2019s host Alan Cumming had earlier informed the audience that one attendee was John Davidson, who advocates for people with Tourette syndrome, a motor disorder that sometimes causes quick repetitive movements or sounds, including inappropriate language.<\/p>\n<p>The broadcaster apologised for not omitting the outburst when airing the event. It said it would remove it from the version of the broadcast available on its streaming service<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSome viewers may have heard strong and offensive language during the Bafta Film Awards,\u201d said the BBC statement. \u201cThis arose from involuntary verbal tics associated with Tourette syndrome, and as explained during the ceremony it was not intentional.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>When contacted by Al Jazeera English, the broadcaster declined to comment further on its editorial decisions regarding the BAFTA Awards, including the removal of Akinola Davies Jr\u2019s \u201cFree Palestine\u201d remarks.<\/p>\n<p>The BBC has <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=ZjaEjI-G4CY\">previously faced criticism<\/a> for coverage related to Israel and Gaza.<\/p>\n<p>In June last year, the BBC opted not to broadcast a documentary it commissioned about medical workers in Gaza due to what it described as \u201cpartiality\u201d issues, a decision more than 100 of the broadcaster\u2019s own journalists petitioned against.<\/p>\n<p>The BBC was also previously accused of editing out pro-Palestinian displays during its coverage of the 2023 BAFTA Awards, including several appeals for a ceasefire in war-battered Gaza.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><br \/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Part of award-winning filmmaker Akinola Davies Jr\u2019s speech in which he says \u2018Free Palestine\u2019 was not aired. Listen to this article\u00a0|\u00a03 mins info The BBC is facing backlash for editing out a section of its coverage of the British Academy Film Awards (BAFTAs) in which prize-winning filmmaker Akinola Davies Jr says, \u201cFree Palestine\u201d, even while [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":13230,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13229","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-europe-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13229","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=13229"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13229\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/13230"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=13229"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=13229"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=13229"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}