The BBC has made a £400,000 payout to former Storyville commissioning editor Lucie Kon, who says she was a victim of antisemitism at the broadcaster.
Kon, who executive produced the Bafta and Oscar-winning Mr Nobody Against Putin and the Emmy-winning We Will Dance Again, was commissioning editor in BBC’s international documentary division for four years until her role was closed in 2025.
Kon claims she was pushed out of her employment, which formally ended in April this year.
Kon has given an interview to The Telegraph in which she says that, following the Hamas attacks on October 7, she was told by colleagues that Zionists are “evil” and that she should “think about what drove Hamas to do what they did”. Kon, who is Jewish, considers herself a Zionist.
She said she was also told that a planned documentary about the music festival attack on October 7 should “contextualise” the actions of the perpetrators, and that she should not oversee it, because, as a Jew, she was “too partial”.
Kon made a formal complaint about her treatment, which was investigated by the BBC. Her complaint was not upheld by the corporation, prompting Kon to appeal the decision. That appeal was also rejected.
Meanwhile, Kon said the BBC told her to stay at home for months, sidelined her and eventually put her out of work.
She told The Telegraph that her religion had not been an issue for the first two decades of her career, but that after October 7 it was “like having Jew stamped on my forehead”.
“They tried to stop me doing my job because I’m a Jew,” she said.
“I think I became a problem. I think I made too much noise about being a Jew inside the BBC. I stood up for my community. I was open about being a Zionist. The BBC says bring your authentic self to work. And I did. And I lost my job as a result.”
A BBC spokesperson said: “While we do not comment on individual staffing matters, antisemitism in any form is not tolerated at the BBC.
“If allegations or concerns are raised, they are taken seriously and investigated in accordance with our policies. We have robust procedures in place to deal with any behaviour that is contrary to our values.”
In a separate Telegraph interview, Kon said the BBC “isn’t full of antisemites but it does have a problem with antisemitism”.
A BBC spokesperson said: “We are grateful that Ms Kon acknowledges that the BBC is not institutionally antisemitic.
“The BBC processes did not uphold any of Ms Kon’s allegations of antisemitism. However, the outcome did acknowledge there were shortcomings, and the personal impact on Ms Kon.
“We would like to acknowledge that Ms Kon was a valued member of staff with many years of dedicated service to the BBC.”
Early last year, the broadcaster proposed to reduce Storyville commissions by 20% per year, resulting in a new team structure consisting of a head of Storyville and a more junior assistant commissioner. Former Channel 4 commissioner Nevine Mabro was appointed as head of the strand and the two previous roles that worked on Storyville were closed.
This article first appeared in Screen’s sister title Broadcast
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