The bias of the BBC with respect to the British and American war effort in Iraq, mentioned in this space last month, has contributed to a formal complaint to the Corporation by the British Conservative party leader, Iain Duncan Smith. Mr. Duncan Smith was particularly incensed by coverage of the recent local elections in Britain, in which the Tories did very well, although the BBC’s commentators minimized their successes. Citing the views of Rod Liddle, a former editor of the BBC radio “Today” program, Mr. Duncan Smith noted that “He says it is not just by accident, it happens all the damn time … . They set their mind about how they perceive you and report you and do nothing but report in that light. They should be news-led.”

Mr. Liddle’s is an interesting case. While working at the BBC he also wrote a column for the left-leaning Guardian newspaper in which, last September, he defied his bosses at the ne ...

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