Overview

This resource is intended to serve as a centralised database around the BBC Panorama Episode “Private ADHD Clinics Exposed”, the complaints procedure, outcomes, arguments of the community and BBC claims as well as the subsequent analysis, cross-referencing and fact-checking of each.

• Short summary for newcomers (expand if you’re not up to date with 2023 Panorama ADHD Episode)

➡️ Current Stage - Stage 3, Ofcom ⬅️

<aside> ℹ️ The BBC ECU has responded via bolierplate text to 22 (28?) people on Mon, 14th Aug. The response is 4 pages, out of which 3 are actual reasoning. It’s mostly sly and roundabout nothing, but there are several things we can pick apart there.

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<aside> ⚠️ The deadline to submit your Ofcom complaint is September 11th. This represents the 20 working days and 28th of August is a Bank Holiday in the UK (apart from Scotland).

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The current stage is Ofcom (Stage 3), and there are specific requests to be complaint:

1. Be concise. There are 255 characters for BBC complaint summary, 1,500 characters for BBC complaint details (hopefully they can also refer to your original complaint) and 750 characters for reasoning of dissatisfaction with the BBC response
2. Be on topic. We can ONLY drag BBC in for breaches of:
   1. OBC Section 1 - Protecting the Under-Eighteens (not very strong)
   2. OBC Section 5 - Due Impartiality and Due Accuracy and Undue Prominence of Views and Opinions (probably the best one)
   3. OBC Section 2 - Harm and Offence (good one)
   4. OBC Section 3 - Crime, Disorder, Hatred and Abuse (less applicable but could be used)
   5. OBC Serction 4 - Religion, Section 6 - Elections and Referendums, Section 9, 10 - Commercial References and Communications in TV and Radio (not applicable)

To submit - Go to the Ofcom BBC Complaint Form

BBC Complaints – Online complaints | Ofcom

A helpful thread with some new / reframed information that you can use to inform your complaint:

BBC ECU complaint not upheld

Most interesting so far:

• BBC continuously claiming that private clinics have a substantially higher percentage of conversions, whilst ignoring that EPUT.FOI.22.2575 and FOI HNY 0460 show 95% and 85% conversion rate from assessment to positive diagnosis via NHS, trying to claim there’s a significant public interest on the basis of percentage alone, which is wholly unrepresentative and underresearched by the Panorama team, source

• Most arguments from Arguments Database - Ready Enough database

• Arguments that BBC didn’t address but you have brought up during Stages 1 through 2 with BBC

• (Debatable) wild inconsistencies between BBC responses, especially around claims of Dr Smith bias and knowledge about the recording fact and purpouse

• BBC exprressly violating Section 2 of OBC dealing with “fabricated scandal that caused harm”, as well as BBCs’ “duty of care”, source

Ofcom is required to guard against harmful or offensive material … misleading material in relation to the representation of factual issues. This rule is therefore designed to deal with content that materially misleads the audience so as to cause harm or offence

• “Powerful drug” misrepresentation and claiming that it’s a subjective term, source
• Dismissing responsibility for SCA being rescinded and real harm over a hypothetical overdiagnosis case, source, source 2

<aside> 🚧 This resource is being updated to provide guidance on Ofcom Complaint Stage. It might take some time for this to complete. Please excercise your own judgement when relying on arguments below in Ofcom Broadcasting Code context.

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What else can I do?

Raise a New Complaint

If you haven’t yet, you can still raise Stage 1 complaints, see [New Complaints](https://neveroff.notion.site/New-Complaints-25cc789f8efd41dc852d541d5316b2a7) for details. This can be done until June 13, 2024. Go to ADHD UK site to start.