BBC pays £400,000 to Jewish producer over antisemitism claims

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The BBC has paid a £400,000 settlement to Lucie Kon, an Oscar-winning executive producer, after she alleged she faced antisemitic remarks from colleagues following the October 7 attacks. Kon, who worked as a commissioning editor, claimed colleagues called Zionists like her "evil" and told her that "if you want to call Hamas terrorists then you have to call Israel terrorists, too."

The settlement

The payment covered redundancy back pay and a settlement for personal injury caused by the process. The BBC stated it did not uphold any of the allegations of antisemitism but acknowledged "shortcomings" in how it treated Kon, which had a "personal impact" on her. The corporation did not specify what those shortcomings were.

Kon's experience

Kon said her religion had not been an issue during her many years at the BBC until the October 7 attacks. She described feeling like she "had Jew stamped on my forehead" and became "a proper pain" that colleagues "didn't know what else to do with." She helped lead a group representing Jewish staff and raised issues with then-director general Tim Davie. Despite her claims, Kon told LBC that the BBC is "not institutionally antisemitic," a point the BBC gratefully acknowledged.

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