THE BBC received more complaints about Bob Vylan’s Glastonbury performance than any other issue in more than four years.
An official report published by the broadcaster on Thursday showed that some 3396 people had complained about the set which saw the artist and crowd chant “death, death to the IDF”.
It is the first time that the BBC has received more than 1000 complaints about a single issue since June 2024, when a total of 1351 people alleged that the Question Time Leaders' Special had been biased against Nigel Farage.
The last time the number of complaints topped 2000 was October 2022, when a BBC News special on Rishi Sunak, entitled “Our New Prime Minister”, was said to have been biased in favour of the Conservatives and their approach to public spending.
The 3396 complaints about Bob Vylan’s performance is the most the BBC has received for any single issue since March 2021, when 6498 people complained about hosts Charlie Stayt and Naga Munchetty mocking then-Tory minister Robert Jenrick about the size of the Union flag in his office.
The controversy around the “death to the IDF” chant has led the BBC to say that it will no longer broadcast performances deemed “high risk”.
A statement from the broadcaster said: “We deeply regret that such offensive and deplorable behaviour appeared on the BBC and want to apologise to our viewers and listeners and in particular the Jewish community. We are also unequivocal that there can be no place for antisemitism at, or on, the BBC.
“It is clear that errors were made both in the lead-up to and during Bob Vylan’s appearance. We think it’s important to set out some of the detail around the streaming of this performance.
“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.”
BBC director-general Tim Davie has also issued a personal apology, asking people to treat each other with “respect and kindness”.
Since the performance, Avon and Somerset Police have launched an investigation into the comments made during the group’s West Holts Stage set.
It has emerged that the group were already under investigation by police for comments made at a concert one month before Glastonbury.
Video footage appears to show frontman Bobby Vylan at Alexandra Palace telling crowds: “Death to every single IDF soldier out there as an agent of terror for Israel. Death to the IDF.”
The rap group issued a statement on Tuesday claiming they were being “targeted for speaking up”.
The group have also had their US visas revoked, ahead of their tour later this year, were pulled from their Saturday headline slot at Radar festival in Manchester and from an upcoming performance at a German music venue.
Elsewhere, the BBC complaints report on Thursday noted that 428 people had complained after newsreader Martine Croxall said the word “women” after “pregnant people”.
The complainants felt Croxall had been “transphobic”, the BBC report said.
