Pollster Scarlett Maguire recently disclosed that she was asked about her voting history before appearing on BBC as a guest. This incident sparked controversy on social media, with Maguire questioning if this was standard procedure for guests. A BBC spokesperson later clarified that the inappropriate question was the result of a junior employee misunderstanding impartiality guidelines.
According to internal BBC rules, staff should not assume their guests are unbiased and should gather information about their affiliations and viewpoints. This incident follows previous accusations of bias, including coverage of the conflict in Gaza and allegations of anti-Israel sentiment among Arabic service reporters.
In another instance, the BBC faced criticism for word choices in reporting on Hamas, with Israeli officials demanding apologies for perceived inaccuracies. Additionally, a documentary about Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi drew backlash for allegations of discrimination against Muslims and insinuations about his involvement in past riots.