So, I made a complaint to the BBC about them using an archived photograph of a day with horrible air pollution in Beijing, instead of a current one (we had excellent weather for the better part of a month). I also pointed-out that the AQI was fantastic (it got down to *10* at one point after I complained).
Here is their response:
Thank you for getting in touch about our report on Beijing and please accept our apologies for the delay in replying. This was a report about air quality, which is now an issue of concern among China’s leadership, so it seemed appropriate to use a photograph illustrating traffic and air pollution. The weather on May 27th does not appear to be of relevance to this story.
Folks, air quality has been an issue here for a long time, but especially since 2001 (when Beijing was awarded the 2008 Olympics).
Yes, air quality needs to improve… but, well, it doesn’t justify providing a misleading image or leaving-out AQI data.
Oh, today’s weather isn’t good. White hazy smog with an AQI of 331 (Hazardous).
I’m sure that the BBC will once again start reporting on our weather, which they haven’t done so far this summer.
And, just in case you’ve missed the pictures I’ve taken of our fantastic weather, they can be seen here.
