BBC hits out at research accusing it of peddling ‘diet of woke bias’ to viewers

Supposed research conducted by the Campaign for Common Sense claimed the UK broadcaster failed to uphold its ‘high standards of impartiality’

(BBC Studios/Bad Wolf/Disney)

The BBC has responded to recent research accusing its broadcasting of peddling a “diet of woke bias” to its viewers through the plotlines of its dramas as well as some of its news coverage.

The Campaign for Common Sense – an advocacy group which says it champions free speech and tolerance – claims the UK broadcaster failed to uphold its “high standards of impartiality”.

While the research has yet to be published, according to reports by The Telegraph the group has surveyed BBC content and allegedly found that it continues to “peddle a steady diet of woke bias both through the plotlines of popular dramas but also in some of its news coverage”.

The findings shared with The Telegraph supposedly found the BBC showed bias in both its televised coverage of debates over race and gender as well as its coverage online that apparently “averaged more than one article per week on the slave trade”.

Citing BBC dramas, including a June episode of its long-running Casualty, which featured a non-binary character discussing gender-affirming surgery, the campaign said its content was being influenced by a “woke world view”.

It was also noted that the broadcaster had recently come under fire for scenes in its Agatha Christie mystery thriller Murder Is Easy that were used as an allegory for colonialism.

Meanwhile, recent episodes of Doctor Who received 144 viewer complaints for incorporating actor Yasmin Finney’s transgender identity into the show’s plot when the characters debated whether an alien should have gendered pronouns.

Time traveller: Yasmin Finney as Rose in ‘Doctor Who’ (Alistair Heap/Bad Wolf/BBC Studios)

A spokesperson for the BBC responded to the accusations, arguing that “cherry-picking a handful of examples or highlighting genuine mistakes in thousands of hours of output does not constitute analysis and is not a true representation of BBC content”.

“We are proud that our output seeks to represent all audiences and a range of stories and perspectives,” they continued.

“Across the entirety of our services there will, of course, be occasions when people disagree with or want to challenge what they have watched or heard and we have well publicised routes for them to do that.”

The Campaign for Common Sense was founded in 2020 by Mark Lehain, who works as a special adviser for the UK’s Department of Education.