Requests for untransmitted material
All requests to see or obtain untransmitted material must be referred to Controller Editorial Policy. In addition, all requests made in connection with court proceedings or pending or active complaint procedures, for example medical negligence, must be referred pre-transmission to Programme Legal Advice and post-transmission to Litigation.
The BBC will not normally hand over untransmitted material to third parties without a court order. Sometimes it is appropriate to accede immediately to such an order, at other times it will be necessary to contest it and appeal it to higher courts.
We never voluntarily allow access to untransmitted material:
- when to do so would endanger people who work for the BBC.
- when it would make it more difficult to gather such material in the future.
- if the requests appear to be "fishing" for evidence.
- if the material contains information that identifies a confidential source or contributor.
- when it conflicts with our contractual obligations.
- when it shows third parties whose rights may be impaired by handing it over.
The BBC's editorial integrity could also be damaged if other organisations and individuals are allowed access to untransmitted material for their own use. For example, we do not normally release untransmitted material to organisations for training and public relations purposes.
There is no legal obligation for us to keep documents, records or untransmitted material gathered in the production of a programme unless and until they are the subject of a request from the police or the courts or there is a threat of litigation.