Over at "Question That" Ian has written an article discussing and questioning the standards of the BBC when it comes to religion, specifically in one of the hot topics du jour: "The BBC loves to bash Christianity but won't touch Islam with a barge poll" (post-publication edit: initiating article can be found here)

Now this might sound a bit rich coming from me given I have a distinct issue myself with BBC's impartiality, at least when it comes to news broadcasting, and where their ability to be thorough with the facts rarely shows light of day (R.I.P Panorama). However this is one issue which I have to wonder if there is really an issue present at all.

Lets get started with my response to this article...starting with a quote that originally came from the Mail on Sunday, stating that the BBC...

...deliberately promotes multiculturalism, is anti-American, anti-countryside and more sensitive to the feelings of Muslims than Christians

Lets put this into context a little. By stating that they are more sensitive to the feelings of Muslims than Christians does not mean they are insensitive to Christians...despite other issues I'll comment on later in this post...and it also doesn't mean that Muslims necessarily are going to be given a wide margin in BBC broadcasting (even if currently it seems they are). What it does allude to is the cold hard truth of the moment and that is that we, as some MP's and all bishops of this land will bark until their hoarse, are historically a Christian nation. We've generally been Christians for as long as any of us care to recite in our History exams and no-one will take that away from us, least of all a few BBC programs. Muslims, on the other hand, are a much "newer" religion in the grand scheme of this countries history.

Forgive me for thinking that give how long Christianity has been the main religion of this country that it is about time that Christians were a little less sensitive about people poking fun at them. To me this is what the BBC's interest in "sensitivity" could also be attributed to. Why should the BBC feel that it has to be as sensitive to a group of people that really should be able to deal with a bit of tongue in cheek criticism through comedy and satire to a group of people that don't necessarily feel all that British yet.

Can anyone seriously deny that the BBC is 'more sensitive to the feelings of Muslims than Christians'? The 'Jerry Springer: The Opera' controversy, in which a performance of a play considered by some Christians to be a 'wilful denigration' of their beliefs

Let me get this out in the open straight away. I feel Jerry Springer: The Opera was a masterpiece, not because of the comedy (which I found hilarious), but because it got a lot of Christian's ultimately riled up about a show that, while making fun of their religion specifically, espoused fundamental Christian values and in no subtle way the benefits of leading what most of us would call a moral life. Unfortunately people, perhaps like Ian, were unable to look beyond the crassness to what was actually a fairly wholesome message of peace, love and liberty.

I also take great disdain to the idea that a TV show/theatre production can denigrate anyone's beliefs. No-one can tell me how important or valid my beliefs are because they are not something that can be debated factually, and at no point in the whole production did anyone specifically attack Christian worshippers that I could remember. It is this kind of paranoid thinking that just riles me because I really believe people with such strong beliefs shouldn't feel they are rocked by a bit of comedy.

Of course by making this statement I willingly accept my own (kind of) double standards here. "But Griff, why on earth then should we be more sensitive to Islam, if their faith is so strong they should be able to deal with it." Totally, yeah, exactly...except I don't believe the issue here is one of Religion, more one of culture and social integration to a "new" population.

This issue reared its head once again this week with the announcement that "the BBC's version of the Nativity this Christmas will depict Mary and Joseph as asylum seekers rejected by brutal Britain

This "outrage" is about as ironic as it comes unfortunately. Firstly because nowhere that I can see that this has anything to do with Islam. Forgive me because I didn't watch the program yesterday (will have to find someone with a recording!) and so I may be missing a trick here, but in fact the whole thing has nothing to do with anything but once again promoting Christian values.

Let me explain. Firstly there is nothing here to say that this is Muslim propoganda, or putting Islam over Christianity. I don't know why the nativity was used as an example in "Question that" other than to highlight another supposedly anti-Christian program. Which brings me on to my second point...how can the story, as abstract as it's being made, of Jesus's birth be even comprehended to be against Christianity? It is a story of overcoming adversity with grace, of Christian values. Why is it that critics of Liverpool Nativity are able to denounce their own religion in this way when Stewart Lee and co are not!

Thirdly there is the issue here of state/religion divide, or lack there of. Most people seem to be getting in to a tizzy about this because it seems to portray Britain, by proxy through local government, as uncaring. People are rightfully taking it to be a political piece in this sense, but then wrongly adding their own religion to it as if somehow the whole of Christianity is being tarred with a bad brush along with Britain. The trouble is that Britain is NOT Christian, and let's face it...some Christians are not Christian either. This show depicts that perfectly. It shows that there is a very un-Christian sentiment to anti-immigration feelings and policies, and that certain people that may call themselves good Christians are actually hypocritically turning into the very people that Mary, Joseph and Jesus had to contest with all those years ago.

Then finally there is here a self imposed belittlement that comes from the above subtext, coming from people like Ian Dale and those lambasting this production. If you are truly saying that the story of Christ's birth, interpreted however the hell it is, is anti-Christian where exactly did you lose your marbles? Forgive me, but if I were a vehement Christian I would not be sitting here saying "How dare you call Britain brutal and, by my own deeming my religion too", I'd be saying "Yes, this is a good modern day example of what Mary and Joseph, and indeed Jesus, had to fight against...it's interesting to see the political overtones but ultimately I can accept that the actions of the Cathy Tyson's character are unchristian regardless of what religion she may be written to have."

There, it isn't so hard is it? Ian Dale, and others out there that agree with him, should try for a little while to disassociate their religious beliefs from the state and perhaps you will stop seeing hidden evils that really weren't there to begin with.

You can't seriously deny that, as reported by the Mail on Sunday, the BBC are more sensitive to the feelings of Muslims than Christians. And, honestly, I haven't even seen a serious attempt at it. Pro-BBC bloggers and commentators dance around this issue rather than confronting it.

Well here is a message from someone distinctly on the fence leaning very far into "anti-BBC" telling you that you're over-reacting. As I have said above I believe that you're right that they are more sensitive to the feelings of Muslims. But then I also feel that they're more sensitive to the feelings of Hindu's, Bahai faith, Sikh, Buddhist and pretty much every other religion other than Christianity too. It is important to note that this crusade (regarding the BBC's "sympathies) seems to be more about disgruntlement with the visibility and acceptance into this countries social fabric of Islam than it does about BBC's principles. I don't see any complaints that no-one is poking fun at Ganesha, Buddha or the Sikh faith. In fact not since goodness gracious me, where it obviously could only be handled by a group of Hindu people themselves, have we seen anything of the sort of comedy or satire involving non-Christian religions.

If people following Ian's view at "Question That" truly had an issue with the BBC's "impartiality" they'd look at the whole of the picture...but when he and others like him degenerate the debate to the level of Islam vs Christianity they are no longer talking about BBC's basic principles, they're just engaging in another pointless religious diatribe.