Morning Joe Regular Katty Kay Rebuked by Employers at BBC for Gaza ‘Genocide’ Remark

(Screengrab via YouTube)

The BBC warned that comments by veteran U.S. correspondent Katty Kay made last month breached its editorial standards when she referred to “the genocide that is being committed” in Gaza during a podcast appearance.

Kay is among the BBC’s most prominent journalists in the U.S., having previously anchored its coverage of the 2016 and 2020 presidential elections. She is also a regular on MS NOW’s Morning Joe, where she will occasionally serve as co-host.

Kay reportedly made the remark while discussing divisions within the Democratic Party on The Rest is Politics: US podcast, which she co-hosts with former Trump White House communications director Anthony Scaramucci.

“I know there is so much anger in the Democratic Party, understandably, and about what has happened in Gaza and Israel, and the government of [Benjamin] Netanyahu’s response to that, and the genocide that is being committed there,” Kay said.

A listener subsequently complained that Kay had presented a contested characterization as fact rather than clearly attributing it to others.

The BBC upheld the complaint, according to an internal memo seen by The Telegraph, acknowledging that the wording “did not meet our editorial standards” and saying Kay had intended to describe the position held by some Democrats but failed to make that distinction clear.

“The wording she used made it sound like she was endorsing the description as her own, and she did not provide appropriate context,” the BBC said in its response to the complainant.

The broadcaster noted that Kay is employed by BBC Studios and occasionally appears on BBC News platforms, but remains bound by its editorial expectations when working elsewhere – including on her podcast.

The BBC memo added: “She regrets having failed to do so with enough clarity in this instance and will use this as a learning opportunity.”

The episode appeared on a podcast produced by Goalhanger, the company co-founded by former BBC sports presenter Gary Lineker, who himself repeatedly became embroiled in disputes with the broadcaster over its impartiality rules.

The admission also comes as new BBC director-general Matt Brittin has pledged to address concerns about impartiality at the broadcaster. The BBC itself has faced scrutiny over its coverage of the Israel-Gaza war after an internal memo reportedly identified “systemic issues” and “a desire always to believe the worst about Israel.”

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