Second complaint to Ofcom following programme 3

My previous complaint 26/09/07 Number:1-33437367 refers.
Having expressed my concerns for the wellbeing of infants and their parents above, I now have serious concerns with issues of child protection, child abuse, and child neglect being implemented by mentor Claire Verity. A specific complaint is about the long-term damage to how the brain becomes 'wired', caused by Claire Verity's insistence that the infants' most basic needs, that of food, nurture and care are limited, simply to ensure a good nights sleep.

Your code is sadly lacking in its ability to protect very young babies who appear in factual and reality programmes.
Section 1 - protecting the Under-Eighteens is mostly concerned with protection from what might be viewed. There is little to protect participants.
Specifically:
Section 1
'The involvement of people under eighteen in programmes',
1.26 Due care must be taken over the physical and emotional welfare and the dignity of people under eighteen who take part or are otherwise involved in programmes. This is irrespective of any consent given by the participant or by a parent, guardian or other person over the age of eighteen in loco parentis.
1.27 People under eighteen must not be caused unnecessary distress or anxiety by their involvement in programmes or by the broadcast of those programmes.

These clauses go some way in offering protection for these babies, but I suspect the context in which they appear with 1.28 will make it difficult to apply to my complaint. Your guidance notes Issue 4: 20 March 2007 have NO ADVICE under the heading Rule 1.26 to 1.28, other than a reference to Research: Consenting children: the use of children in non-fiction television programmes (2001) BSC; Consenting adults (2000) BSC

Section 2 Principle To ensure that generally accepted standards are applied to the content of television and radio services so as to provide adequate protection for members of the public from the inclusion in such services of harmful and/or offensive material.

2.2 'Factual programmes or items or portrayals of factual matters must not materially mislead the audience'
I suggest Bringing Up Baby breaches clause 2.2, particularly in the context of paragraphs 2 and 4 of your guidance notes, Issue 7, 2 August 2007.

Paragraph 2 reads Nevertheless, Ofcom is required to guard against harmful or offensive material, and it is possible that actual or potential harm and / or offence may be the result of misleading material in relation to the representation of factual issues. This rule is therefore designed to deal with content which materially misleads the audience so as to cause harm or offence.
Paragraph 4 reads
Whether a programme or item is "materially" misleading depends on a number of factors such as the context, the editorial approach taken in the programme, the nature of the misleading material and above all what the potential effect could be or actual harm or offence that has occurred.

Each of the 3 episodes of Bringing Up Baby clearly breach section 2 of your code.

Channel 4 and Silver River Productions' have set out to deceive the public. They claim to have consulted widely with paediatricians, psychologists and others, and have written to reassure myself and others: "I would like to reassure you once again that we take the welfare of children in this series, as with all programmes, very seriously. Bringing Up Baby is a thoughtful and responsible observation of different methods of childcare. " This is not the case and is deliberately misleading. Both companies have not responded to my requests for details of who their advisors are.

There follows a transcript of some of Part 3, broadcast 9th October, annotated by myself:

Notes from part 3 of Bringing Up Baby

Bringing Up Baby Week 3

Week 3. Topic, crying.
This week portrayed scenes of an abusive and neglectful nature that were difficult to view. There is so much wrong with this series it is almost pointless highlighting specifics. The overwhelming message coming from the poor babies this week was one of dangerously heightened stress levels. Babies being force fed, babies vomiting, babies showing very red skin tone, back arching, and turning away when being held - avoidant behaviour. Babies close to collapse being roughly fed as part of a regime to be followed. Shocking scenes of babies becoming quiet...

The time-frame here is 2 - 6 weeks

Spock family, having 'their time' snuggled on sofa in the evening.
Dad: This is what we used to do (baby is 2 weeks old)
Mum: I feel physically sick when he cries - I don't know if you suffer from that.
...I gotta go.

----
Mentors Claire Verity CV, Claire Scott CS (Continuum)
CV Babies cry for no reason at all.
CS They have such an anticipation about being held.
CV It isn't about being held, there isn't a reason why they cry all the time, sometimes they just cry for absolutely no reason at all. Very clever little things - they know exactly what's going on.
CS (gasp) You think they're manipulative don't you?
CV They are - very much, very much they are, course they are.

----
Voice over (VO) Colic isn't harmful. Doctors advise babies are not left to cry for more than 15 mins

This scene was very difficult to view

Truby King family struggled with evening crying and had previously brought the twins down.
CV suggests cutting the afternoon feed 'so it will feed better at 7.00 and sleep'.

The feed is 1 1/2 oz.

Mum: It doesn't seem like that much Claire, does it?
CV It isn't is it? I know, it's hardly anything at all. Right, that's good.
Right little (name), you're in for a bit of a shock hunny bunny. Make the most of it.
- It's quite a shock to the baby's system to do this, but it's just a one-off, or maybe tomorrow as well just to get them back into this routine of sleeping at 7 o clock because they're very much out of it by the sound of it and I'm not sure what's gone wrong. Something else has gone wrong somewhere else down the line, and we need to take this drastic action to get them back in otherwise they're going to keep doing this for a long time.
- There. What d'you think to that young man?
Mum (distressed, baby mouthing) Oh look, he's looking for food. I don't want to see him hungry. CV He's going to be hungry, but it's up to you if you want to stop it right now and feed another 2 oz and be up and down stairs all night.
Mum: OK
CV I know you can do it.

CV Rocking twins in buggy, to camera...
I think she thinks she's starving them and they're going to be really upset and they're going to hate her for it. I mean, they're only babies, they don't even know and at the end of the day, when it comes to bath time they'll be starving and that means they're going to take 4 oz which is a good night's sleep. You can't expect to be tied to a baby literally 24 hrs a day. You have to have time on your own, you need to have time out and that's between 7 and 11 when these babies are in bed.

-----
VO To make sure they sleep in the evening she wakes the babies from their afternoon nap one hour earlier.

What follows was a damming piece of broadcasting showing the abusive and brutal treatment of infants, which was almost impossible to watch.

Babies screaming in distress
Mum (distressed): I hate it when she's crying.
CV It is all about at the end of the day keeping them awake during this hour just to keep them going so they're absolutely shattered and really hungry.

The twins are so tired they can hardly feed - but they have stopped crying. They are being fed roughly to force them to take the milk, when they are exhausted.

CV Come on madam.
Give it 100 per cent with this routine. No grey areas, black and white, all or nothing.

Later, sat on settee, dad with a beer
CV This is what it's all about, you need to toughen up, really.
Mum: But it's so difficult Claire CV No it isn't.
Be firm at the end of the day. You're the one that needs this time together.
Dad: I'll drink to that.
Mum appears defeated

----
The breastfeeding in public discussion was poor. Two of the mentors were shocked at the prospect.

----
CV Dad: Don't stick your tongue out at me. (See Social Baby book. This is early communication, and something to be celebrated. It is hugely empowering for dads if they know what is happening)

----
CV's child minder mum (back to work after 6 weeks) feeding the baby quickly, twice. Baby sick. CV It's all about how much you can get inside. It's like a car, the more you put in the further it goes. Just the same with a baby.

Baby wakes at 2.45am

After several traumatic nights (name)'s no longer waking. Are these the first parents to get an unbroken night, and just 6 weeks after giving birth (mum) is back at work as a childminder.

------------------------

Have you signed the petition at 10 Downing Street yet?
Or cut and paste the URL and send to everyone
http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/parentingshows/

«Back to Bringing Up Baby

«Back to our home page