RELIGIONS NEWS AGENCY (REDNA) – Ofcom, the UK’s communications regulator, has imposed a £40,000 financial penalty on Islam Channel Ltd for “serious and repeated breaches” of broadcasting rules.
It found that “The Andinia Plan”, a one-hour documentary on a conspiracy theory which originated in a neo-Nazi publication, amounted to hate speech against Jewish people.
It alleges there is a plan to establish a Jewish state in Patagonia, the southern region of South America governed by Argentina and Chile.
Ofcom says the content was antisemitic, highly offensive and not sufficiently justified by the context.
It says “We concluded that these were serious and repeated breaches of our rules which warranted the imposition of the following statutory sanctions: a financial penalty, to be paid by Islam Channel Ltd to HM Paymaster General; a direction not to repeat the programme; and a direction to broadcast a statement of our findings on a date and in a form to be determined by Ofcom”.