Summary of complaint
We received complaints from some people who were unhappy the editor of the Jewish Chronicle, Jake Wallis Simons, was a panellist and who felt that the panel had a pro-Israeli bias.
Our response
The purpose ofΜύQuestionΜύTimeΜύis to facilitate a lively debate.ΜύThe panel reflected the usual mix of politicians and public figures from a range of backgrounds, and several stories dominating the news agenda were discussed.ΜύWhat was happening that week in Israel and Gaza was therefore naturally a focus of the debate, with an audience member putting to the panel βHow do we solve the crisis in the Middle Eastβ.ΜύΜύ
Fiona challenged Jake Wallis Simons about a tweet he had posted recently, and deleted, which she described as offending many as Islamophobic. We also heard a member of the audience challenge Mr Wallis Simons about his tweet.
While we appreciate that not every panellist will meet with universal approval, as Fiona indicated at the end of the discussion, Question Time will return to events in the Middle East on future programmes. The composition of the panel varies week to week and we again will hear a range of viewpoints on this and other topical news stories.
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