Hamas and the Palestinians are the occupiers. And they’ve been brainwashed for generations to think Israel is the enemy.

This doesn’t surprise me. The Beeb has become an organization that willingly and freely beclowns itself.

I used to be an avid listener to the BBC World Service when it was on shortwave and I eventually became a volunteer monitor, regularly sending in reception reports to its audience research section. Its on-air presentation was dignified and professional in those days.

But, nearly 3 decades ago, it underwent some major changes, such as tailoring its schedule to local time when, for years, listeners were accustomed to hearing certain programs when they were broadcast in accordance with Greenwich Mean Time. In the late 1990s, the decision was made to close down its shortwave service because, apparently, everyone had access to the Internet, even in the bush out in the middle of nowhere.

I stopped listening for a few years, but I found that I could hear it via Internet streaming. I was appalled at how it had changed during that brief interval. Its hosts were, on the whole, polite and courteous when the BBC was on shortwave, but with the Internet, that wasn’t always the case. I heard interviews which were rude and belligerent and, if the person being interviewed had an opinion that didn’t match that of the interviewer, he or she was often bullied and derided.

I quit listening altogether over 10 years ago and, to be honest, I don’t miss it. The BBC World Service I loved, admired, and respected was long gone by then.