British punk-rap duo Bob Vylan are set to take Ireland's national broadcaster RTÉ to court over its coverage of their performance at Glastonbury last June. The band's lead singer Pascal Robinson-Foster has denied allegations that he led antisemitic chants, which RTÉ broadcast as part of their news coverage.
According to the Belfast-based law firm Phoenix Law Solicitors, representing Vylan, the proceedings are in response to a "baseless and defamatory" claim made by the broadcaster. The firm claims that the allegations of antisemitism were entirely untrue and that the band's comments on Israeli state forces were "within the confines of political expression".
Vylan have long been vocal about their opposition to Israel's actions in Gaza, but they maintain that this does not equate to antisemitism. "There is a fundamental distinction between speaking critically about the role of the Israeli state forces and being antisemitic," said Darragh Mackin, one of the firm's solicitors.
The band claims that RTÉ failed to address the harm caused by their coverage and has refused to retract or apologise for its allegations. As a result, Vylan are seeking redress for the "significant reputational and emotional damage" suffered as a result of the broadcast, which was seen by a national and online audience.
Last month, British police questioned a man in his 30s over an alleged connection to the incident, while reports of antisemitic incidents in the UK saw a spike following the Glastonbury performance. However, Vylan maintain that they were not engaged in any conduct that could be described as antisemitic.
The case is likely to raise questions about free speech and the responsibility of broadcasters to verify information before broadcasting it. As one of the most prominent voices against Israel's actions in Gaza, Vylan's reputation has been a major target for RTÉ's allegations.
According to the Belfast-based law firm Phoenix Law Solicitors, representing Vylan, the proceedings are in response to a "baseless and defamatory" claim made by the broadcaster. The firm claims that the allegations of antisemitism were entirely untrue and that the band's comments on Israeli state forces were "within the confines of political expression".
Vylan have long been vocal about their opposition to Israel's actions in Gaza, but they maintain that this does not equate to antisemitism. "There is a fundamental distinction between speaking critically about the role of the Israeli state forces and being antisemitic," said Darragh Mackin, one of the firm's solicitors.
The band claims that RTÉ failed to address the harm caused by their coverage and has refused to retract or apologise for its allegations. As a result, Vylan are seeking redress for the "significant reputational and emotional damage" suffered as a result of the broadcast, which was seen by a national and online audience.
Last month, British police questioned a man in his 30s over an alleged connection to the incident, while reports of antisemitic incidents in the UK saw a spike following the Glastonbury performance. However, Vylan maintain that they were not engaged in any conduct that could be described as antisemitic.
The case is likely to raise questions about free speech and the responsibility of broadcasters to verify information before broadcasting it. As one of the most prominent voices against Israel's actions in Gaza, Vylan's reputation has been a major target for RTÉ's allegations.
. I get where they're coming from - you don't want your comments taken out of context and used as a smear against you. But at the same time, if they were really inciting hatred towards Jews, that's a different story altogether 
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I'm low-key shocked that they're taking RTÉ to court over this! I mean, I've seen some wild stuff on Glastonbury coverage in the past, but this is just ridiculous 
. Can you imagine if a journalist did a segment on your views and then attacked you for having them? 
Pascal's got every right to express his opinions, even if they're not for everyone. It's about time someone held RTÉ accountable for spreading unverified 'facts' 
. And btw, why wasn't anyone else called out for questioning Vylan about the alleged chants? This all feels super fishy 
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I think this is all super crazy! Like, you can't just go around accusing someone of antisemitism without proof, right? 
It's not like they're just going to apologize and retract without doing some serious digging first.
We need to be careful about where we draw the line between criticism of government policies and outright hate speech.
It just goes to show how sensitive everyone has become when it comes to certain topics... and how hard it can be to have a respectful conversation without everyone getting offended. 
It's not fair to Bob Vylan that they're having to take RTÉ to court over something that was clearly taken out of context. I get that people are passionate about the Israeli-Gaza issue, but isn't it time we started listening to each other instead of accusing others of hate speech?
It's not like they're the ones being antisemitic, but somehow RTÉ got it wrong. I'm definitely keeping an eye on this case to see how it plays out... hoping that free speech and a clear conscience win over in the end 
and now they're trying to claw back the damage? nice one, rtele 
. this whole thing just reeks of bad journalism and a lack of accountability. can we please have a platform that values nuance and context over clickbait headlines and knee-jerk reactions? 