BBC 3 was corrected after it Tweeted the wrong information to its followers about gay rights in Russia.
The BBC were slammed last night by the Russian Embassy after it tweeted:
“In Russia it’s illegal to tell anyone that being gay is normal. #ReggieYatesExtremeRussia: Gay & Under Attack, now pic.twitter.com/NVyabGblBn”
The Russian Embassy were quick to snap back:
“.@bbcthree This is plain wrong. Care to read http://rusemb.org.uk/press/1436 #ReggieYatesExtremeRussia”
The programme fronted by Reggie Yates was centred around the fight and struggles that many LGBT Russians face after the introduction of a law in June 2013, which makes it illegal for anyone to talk about homosexuality to people under the age of 18.
Since the introduction of the law Russia’s gay community has been on high alert from attacks and abuse. In 2014, Channel 4 broadcast a film called Hunted, which documented the cruelty that many face in their day-to-day living. In Russia it is claimed that only 1% of gay people dare to live openly because of the homophobic attacks on the gay community.
The BBC replied to the tweet,
‘@RussianEmbassy Sorry for simplification. As the show correctly said, in Russia it’s illegal to tell anyone under 18 being gay is normal.”
