THE BBC is facing further accusations of censoring calls for a ceasefire in Gaza at another Scottish awards ceremony.
During the broadcast of the Scots Trad Music Awards on BBC Alba on Saturday evening, Iona Fyfe was awarded Scots Singer of the Year.
During her acceptance speech, Fyfe held up a piece of paper that read “permanent ceasefire now” in reference to the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas in Gaza – but cameras cut away from the stage as she did so.
We previously told how the broadcaster came under fire for editing out calls for a ceasefire in Gaza from coverage of the Scottish Bafta Awards.
The sign I held up said #CeasefireNow but there was a pan out. I won’t back down on that. Folk music is protest. What else could it be? pic.twitter.com/7VZiHRGUPt
— Iona Fyfe (@ionafyfe) December 2, 2023
“I’ve been thinking about what it means to be a Scots singer and a folk singer,” said Fyfe as she accepted her award.
“And as Woody Guthrie said: ‘It is a folk singer’s job to comfort the disturbed and to disturb the comfortable.’”
However, as Fyfe pulled out the piece of paper the broadcast swiftly changed to a wide shot of the audience making it impossible to read the sign.
Fyfe continued: “For that reason I want you to listen to me when I say that we are safe but other people are not”.
Speaking to The National, Fyfe said she was not surprised by the choice to obscure her call for peace.
“It doesn’t break impartiality guidelines just to call for a ceasefire and call for peace,” she said.
“It’s disappointing but not surprising.
“I’m delighted to have won the award and they can be so important in the music industry as sometimes they get you some more bookings and really help your career.
“But when there’s so many things going on in the world it’s really difficult to sit in a room celebrating, having drinks, and realising that there’s other stuff happening.
“So, I wanted to use that platform to speak about that [Gaza] and also raise awareness of the fact that Aberdeen University is cutting language provision.”
It comes after the BBC cut the acceptance speeches of certain award winners at the Scottish Baftas because they used the opportunity to express solidarity with Palestinians and call for a ceasefire.
While their speeches appeared in full on the live stream of the event, the edit on BBC iPlayer cut them entirely or removed all mention of a ceasefire in Gaza.
The BBC said that “some edits were made so the content was compliant with BBC editorial guidelines on impartiality”.
The BBC has been contacted for comment.
