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On 18 May 2020, the UK communications regulator Ofcom ruled that Loveworld Limited, which broadcasts the religious television service Loveworld, breached its Broadcasting Code after a news programme and a live sermon featured potentially harmful claims about the causes of and treatments for COVID-19. The Ofcom investigation found that a report on Loveworld News, a programme featuring news from studios around the world, included a number of uncorroborated claims that the source of the risk to health was the effect of 5G Wi-Fi networks rather than the viral transmission of COVID-19. The report...

Ofcom determined that it was not necessary to investigate further complaints against ITV’s Good Morning programme pursuant to Rule 2.1, about remarks made by one of its presenters, Eamonn Holmes, concerning the causal link between the onset of coronavirus and 5G connectivity. However, Ofcom did issue guidance to ITV and its presenters on how they should rightfully challenge public authorities during the current serious health crisis. Good Morning is a daily magazine programme covering topical issues produced by ITV Broadcasting Limited (ITV). On 13 April 2020, the programme’s...

On 20 April 2020, the UK communications regulator Ofcom ruled that ESTV Ltd had breached its Broadcasting Code by airing an interview on the Coronavirus pandemic which risked causing “significant harm to viewers.” ESTV Ltd, the licensee, is the owner of the local TV channel London Live, which serves the London area. On 8 April 2020, London Live broadcast an 80-minute interview with the former footballer and sports broadcaster David Icke, who was introduced by the presenter Brian Rose at the start of the programme as “a writer and public speaker known since the 1990s as a professional...

The effects of COVID-19 and the lockdown have dramatically affected the UK film and TV industry, with cinemas closed and most studios shut as productions are suspended. Below is a summary reflecting the impact this has had on the industry. For example, soaps such as BBC’s Eastenders and ITV’s Coronation Street and Emmerdale have had their production suspended for the foreseeable future and fewer episodes are being broadcast each week to maximise the supply of pre-filmed material. However, as a significant proportion of the British population are confined to their homes, there...

London’s High Court rejected RT’s judicial review application to overturn Ofcom’s record GBP 200 000 fine against the broadcaster for breaching impartiality rules relating to several programmes about events in the Ukraine, the war in Syria and the Salisbury poisoning. RT is the Autonomous Non-Profit Organisation TV-Novosti, a Russian corporation which holds a licence to broadcast the RT television service in the United Kingdom. Ofcom had opened its investigation after receiving viewer complaints about RT’s coverage of the March 2018 poisoning of Serge Skripal and his...