The Sound of Quintuplets Crying

When a Russian woman recently gave birth to quintuplets, it made news around the world. But BBC viewers who watched the footage of the babies might have thought something was a little odd. Why were the babies crying, even though they had respirators in their mouths? It turns out the cries were dubbed in:
The BBC has admitted that it added the sound of crying to a report yesterday on the birth of a set of quintuplets. It is the latest in a series of rows over fakery to hit the corporation in recent months...
Footage of the infants was distributed by the hospital, but it was silent. Yet when the BBC ran the story on its website, the images were accompanied by the sound of babies crying, even though the quintuplets had respirators in their mouths...
Other television networks broadcast the clips without the sound of crying...
A BBC spokesman said: "We received the film without sound and, although we do not believe viewers were materially misled, we should not have added sound to these pictures."

Birth/Babies Journalism

Posted on Sat Nov 17, 2007



Comments

Oh hell, another journalistic icon shows that ethics and honest standards no longer exist in the news business.

on a related note, when Star Trek was broadcast, and still on the videos, in the opening credits the studio dubbed in the "whoosing" sound as the Enterprise flies past because it wsa more believable. The test audience didn't understand, at least not very well, that there is no sound when a spaceship flies past you in space.
Posted by Christopher Cole  on  Sun Nov 18, 2007  at  09:40 PM
It's rare for the BBC to do something like this and they've owned up and apologised. How does the BBC's conduct compare with, say, Fox?
Posted by Robert N  on  Mon Nov 19, 2007  at  07:12 AM
The situation is different. BBC is a respected news outlet. Fox is strictly entertainment.
Posted by Mark  on  Mon Nov 19, 2007  at  03:00 PM
It's rare for the BBC to do something like this

I assume you're speaking sarcastically since it's quite common for the BBC to do nonsense. (Like fixing contests for little kid shows.)

The notion that the BBC is a model of integrity has baffled me for years.
Posted by Joe  on  Mon Nov 19, 2007  at  04:03 PM
Just be thankful that Scratch-and-Sniff TV, otherwise known as Smellovision never really caught on. Quintuple dirty diapers. Fake that, I dare ya
Posted by Hairy Houdini  on  Thu Nov 22, 2007  at  04:38 PM
Well im only crying because i have to leave shepard school but im also crying because there is this tecaher there named ms. Burak that i just can't leave because i love her
Posted by ali  on  Sun Dec 09, 2007  at  11:48 AM
i will miss ms. burak so i will cry tonight
Posted by ali  on  Sun Dec 09, 2007  at  11:49 AM
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