BBC Scandal: Analyst says coup plotters made massive error in not killing President Erdoğanhttps://t.co/IFT7H1A4VT pic.twitter.com/6gIb7Af0tJ
— DAILY SABAH (@DailySabah) July 26, 2016
The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) permitted Sky News' former World Affairs Analyst Tim Marshall to claim on live television that Turkey's coup plotters made two massive errors in their failed attempt to overthrow the democratically elected government, the first one being, "They didn't kill President Erdoğan."
"That is the first thing you should do," Marshall continued.
The second error according to Marshall was they didn't "shut down media."
Turkey's Defense Minister Fikri Işık criticized BBC's "pro-coup" coverage of the July 15 attempted coup in a telephone conversation with his British counterpart, according to a Turkish Defense Ministry source.
Defense Minister Işık spoke with Michael Fallon Tuesday and thanked him for the British government's support for Turkey, but also said he expected the BBC to cover the story accurately, said the source, speaking on condition of anonymity due to restrictions on speaking with the media.
Fallon, for his part, said his country welcomed the coup's defeat. He said they appreciated the support of Turkey's people as well as its political parties for democratic values and the rule of law.
Fallon said they stood in solidarity with Turkey's government, which he said was elected with widespread public support.
He said he would deliver Turkey's complaint to the BBC.
The BBC's coverage of the failed coup was also criticized by other senior Turkish figures, including Foreign Minister Mevlüt Cavuşoğlu, after a leaked email revealed producers were "struggling" to find critics of the Turkish government to appear on their programs.
The email, written by a producer working for the BBC World News channel, said personnel were "struggling to find anyone in the country who is critical of what the government is doing."
It added, "We're hoping to find someone here who might be willing to speak out against the current situation."
The attempted coup left 246 people dead and thousands of others wounded.
Turkey accuses U.S.-based preacher Fethullah Gülen and his terror organization or Parallel State Structure (FETO/PDY) of being behind the failed coup and has called for his extradition to face trial.
