The BBC has been mocked for describing the riots in France as “mostly peaceful” while footage showed Paris ablaze and masked rioters clashing with police.
Some viewers accused the corporation of downplaying the violence in a report on Sunday’s News At Ten, which covered a weekend of rioting and looting across the country.
During the report from the French capital, the BBC’s Paris correspondent described the protests as “mostly peaceful”.
The comment was made over footage showing masked rioters fighting police, fires and explosions in the streets, as well as looters attacking a wine shop.
The demonstrations began amid anger over the cost-of-living crisis, education standards and the government of President Emmanuel Macron, but quickly descended into widespread disorder.
Several cities, including Paris, have since banned protests, while the government considers whether to declare a state of emergency.
Speaking during Sunday’s News At Ten report, Mr Waterhouse said: “In Paris and beyond, half a million people had filled cities across France to protest over the future of their country.
“They were mostly peaceful, but as we saw in the capital, in the wings were those who wanted to take advantage of the disorder.”
The BBC’s Paris correspondent James Waterhouse reported on the riots engulfing France for Sunday’s News At Ten, with viewers criticising his description of the unrest as “mostly peaceful”
The report was accompanied by footage of the destruction, including fires at Paris’s Place de la République
“The shops that have been hit have been completely gutted, like this wine shop has been looted top to bottom.
“And this morning, in Paris and across France, there is an anger – few believe this was at the hands of the genuine protesters, but down to an opportunistic minority who came in and sought to rob and cause carnage.”
Viewers questioned the wording, with some accusing the BBC of minimising the scale of the chaos and the number of violent offenders involved.
Writer and broadcaster Emma Trimble posted: “If it were not for social media, we would have no idea what is going on in France. The BBC are still claiming it is ‘mostly peaceful’ …”
Another user wrote: “Mostly peaceful protests is how the BBC described the unrest in France. Another narrative to gaslight millions.”
Comments beneath the video shared on the BBC News channel on YouTube included: “Mostly Peaceful… Lets ignore the looting, burning down of buildings, cars, and bikes on the street.”
Another viewer said: “How can a state broadcaster possibly say any of the above was ‘mostly peaceful’ – this is utter nonsense.”
Richard Tice, Reform UK’s deputy leader and a critic of the television licence fee, said: “The BBC is broken. Calling the riots in France ‘mostly peaceful’ tells you everything you need to know.”
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Others also criticised News At Ten presenter Jane Hall for describing Limoges Town Hall, which was set ablaze on Saturday, as “badly damaged”. One viewer responded: “That town is completely destroyed, not damaged.”
The report showed burning cars, ransacked shops and street battles involving rioters
Jane Hill presented Sunday night’s edition of the BBC’s News At Ten
The 19th century town hall in Limoges was set ablaze, with its belltower and belfry collapsing
Police officers are seen clashing with protesters in French capital Paris on Saturday
One person taking part in the protests that turned into riots runs past a burning car in Paris
There has also been widespread looting – here a rioter uses an iron bar to smash the window of an Adidas store and film himself at Châtelet-Les Halles in Paris on Sunday
The report that followed told of how the 19th century building was ‘devoured by flames’.
Sunday night’s report from Paris featured interviews with victims of the violence including owners of shops ransacked and a woman who was injured and believed she had been hit in the face with an iron bar.
A BBC spokesman said: ‘No one watching, reading or listening to BBC News coverage of the France protests and riots can be in any doubt as to what was happening – there is coverage of the fires, the looting and violence.
‘James Waterhouse and the team of reporters in France over the weekend gave broader context to the protests and riots – making the point that as well as the destructive scenes, several hundred thousand people were on the streets in peaceful protest, and those carrying out the violence and looting were a small fraction of that number.’
About 2,400 people were arrested over the weekend and authorities said thousands of businesses were damaged or looted.
President Emmanuel Macron denounced what he called ‘unrestrained violence’ by ‘insurrectionist elements from radical far-left groups, joined by numerous criminals’.
Paris police issued an overnight curfew on Monday in two areas of the French capital aimed at protecting ‘people and property from the violence and looting’, the city’s police said in a statement.
Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu had earlier called for ‘very limited’ and ‘localised’ curfews.
He said in a post on X today: ‘The targeted curfews have contributed to the calm of last night.’
He added that such measures could be extended ‘where the situation requires it’.
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