BBC to review live event guidance following Glasto furore
June 30, 2025
The BBC has said it should have cut away from a live broadcast of Bob Vylan’s performance at Glastonbury on June 28th, during which the rap band’s singer led the crowd in chants that the BBC deemed “antisemitic” and “unacceptable”.
Consequently, the BBC has said it will review its guidance around live events.
“Millions of people tuned in to enjoy Glastonbury this weekend across the BBC’s output but one performance within our lives treams included comments that were deeply offensive. The BBC respects freedom of expression but stands firmly against incitement to violence. The antisemitic sentiments expressed by Bob Vylan were utterly unacceptable and have no place on our airwaves,” said the BBC
The statement continued: “The performance was part of a live stream of the West Holts stage on BBC iPlayer. The judgment on [June 28th] to issue a warning on screen while streaming online was in line with our editorial guidelines. In addition, we took the decision not to make the performance available on demand. The team were dealing with a live situation but with hindsight we should have pulled the stream during the performance. We regret this did not happen.
“In light of this weekend, we will look at our guidance around live events so we can be sure teams are clear on when it is acceptable to keep output on air,” concluded the BBC.
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