Cynthiachandran’s Blog

Last week, there have been heated debates among the global media and a group of politicians in the UK’s ruling Labour Party on whether to address terrorist or gunmen coinciding with the Mumbai attacks.  According to the ‘Indian Express’, BBC has been using the term ‘gunmen’ and avoided using the word, ‘terrorist’.

Steve Pound, MP, who is representing Ealing North in the British Parliament, said in a statement released to news agencies that it was ‘the worst sort of mealy-mouthed posturing.’ The ‘Indian Express’ had reported on this matter. Ealing North is having a major population of South Asians and infact he was echoing the sentiments of the people there.

The accusation against BBC was not something new.  Following the July 7, 2005 bombings in underground tube stations, the correspondent had addressed the terrorists as ‘bombers.’  There was a hue and cry from across the world on using the word as ‘bombers’ or ‘militants’. 

Later, the then BBC Chairman Michael Grade told BBC’s Today programme that the broadcaster should have called the July 7 bombers terrorists because they were universally viewed as such within the corporation.

BBC’s guidelines say that the ‘terrorist’ word is not banned, but should be used ‘sparingly’ and that a bare reporting of facts could be a ‘barrier rather than an aid to understanding’ and ‘undermine’ the news organisation’s ‘credibility’.  BBC is state owned but independently run. 

So they have a set of norms on what and how to report news.  However, I feel that the ultimate decision should come from the editor and the reporter.  But I do remember that during 7/7 attacks in London; the BBC had used the word ‘terrorist’ for a prolonged period and then moving on to ‘bomber’.

Photograph with special permission from Indiavision News Channel.

If you check the BBC’s website on Mumbai attacks, it is evident that the attackers are referred to as ‘gunmen’ in most places and ‘suspected terrorists’ in just one place.  However according to the ‘Indian Express’, there is a sea change in BBC’s Hindi and Urdu service and it seems that the English language service people are the only one who is hesitant to use the word ‘terrorist.’

CNN’s Stand

It translates as freedom fighters in certain languages. “We are not alone in not calling them terrorists.”

In all its stories on Mumbai attacks, CNN described the attackers as terrorists without any fear.  Nevertheless, the BBC’s press office had released a statement as “We are not calling them freedom fighters. We are calling them ‘bombers’ or ‘militants’. The fact is terrorist does not have a universal meaning.

The debate is still raging on and after a while it will be sidelined in the cacophony of other news items.  This can of worms will be let loose when another terrorist attack happens elsewhere and the debate goes on and on without any proper conclusion.