UK: TV’s most complained about programmes of 2023 revealed

In 2023, UK’s communication regulator Ofcom found a total of 35 programmes in breach of its broadcasting rules. The regulator also published 15 adjudications on complaints from individuals and organisations that complained that they had been treated unfairly and/or had their privacy unwarrantably infringed in TV and radio programmes.

During the year, Ofcom published 23 Broadcast and On Demand Bulletins which announced 57 new broadcast standards investigations, as well the outcome of 46 investigations.

During 2023, audience complaints about standards on TV continued to make the headlines with news coverage of the Israel-Gaza conflict, the Coronation of King Charles and celebrity on-screen spats featuring in our top 10.

For Ofcom, complaints are a vital barometer for how audiences think and feel. Over the course of the last year, Ofcom received 69,236 complaints about 9,638 cases. That’s nearly twice as many complaints as Ofcom dealt with in 2022 – although the two most complained about programmes of the year make up nearly a quarter of the total complaints.

Importantly, this number doesn’t include complaints about programmes on the BBC. Under the BBC Charter, these must be handled by the BBC in the first instance.

Almost one in ten complaints to Ofcom this year were about coverage of the ongoing conflict in Israel and Gaza which began in October. Ofcom plays a crucial role in preserving the integrity of broadcast news and current affairs programming, by upholding standards of due impartiality and due accuracy. And so, complaints about this content – on a range of channels – are being prioritised by the Ofcom team.

The regulator imposed sanctions on four broadcasters for content breaches, including a £40,000 fine to the Islam channel and £10,000 to Ahlebait TV, both for broadcasting antisemitic content.

Ofcom also found GB News in breach of its rules on five occasions after its investigations found it broke the rules that protect audiences from harm twice and our due impartiality rules three times.