BBC fined for faking TV contest winner

A children's television show on the British Broadcasting Corp. faked the results of a contest, drawing a $100,000 fine Monday from a regulatory agency.

In imposing its first fine on the BBC, the Office of Communications said the broadcaster broke the rules by using a studio guest to pose as the winner of a phone-in competition on the "Blue Peter" show on Nov. 27.

The show used the guest after a technical problem made it impossible for viewers to call the show.

The BBC said in a statement that it regretted that the agency "found it necessary to impose a fine."

"As our previous statements have made clear, we fully accept the seriousness of this case and apologize for the breach of trust with our audiences," the broadcaster said.

Last week, the Independent Committee for the Supervision of Standards of the Telephone Information Services imposed a $300,000 fine against Eckoh UK Ltd., which runs contests for Channel 4's "Richard and Judy" show. The regulator found that viewers were being encouraged to call a premium-rate phone number even after a contest winner had been chosen.