RT broke broadcasting rules on impartiality, says Ofcom
Kremlin-funded broadcaster RT broke impartiality in news programmes after the Salisbury novichok poisoning in March, Ofcom said today.
The media regulator said RT, formerly known as Russia Today, failed to preserve due impartiality in seven news and current affairs programmes over a six-week period.
“Taken together, the seven breaches represent a serious failure of compliance with our broadcasting rules,” Ofcom said in a statement.
“We have told RT that we are minded to consider imposing a statutory sanction. The broadcaster now has an opportunity to make representations to us, which we will consider before proceeding further,” it added.
RT said it was “extremely disappointed” by the regulator’s findings and said it will decide its next steps shortly.
The conclusions come after Ofcom investigated 10 programmes broadcast by the Russia-backed media organisation between March and May.
Two of the breaches involved discussions of the poisonings of former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia in Salisbury.
In the news programme ‘Sputnik’, presenter George Galloway, a former British MP, cast doubts on the links between the poisonings and the Russian state.
But Ofcom said the broadcaster had failed to offer a range of views on the subject during the programme.
Other breaches related to discussions about the conflict in Syria and the Ukrainian government’s position on Nazism and the treatment of Roma gypsies.
The regulator found three of the 10 programmes did not break broadcasting rules.
In a statement RT said: “We operate under rules outlined by the regulator, and always strive to abide by them.
“It appears Ofcom has failed to fully take on-board what we said in response to its investigations and, in particular, has not paid due regard to the rights of a broadcaster and the audience.”
The maximum sanction Ofcom can impose on a broadcaster is £250,000 or five per cent of revenues.