Boaden received criticism following the July 7 terror attacks in London when she issued a memo instructing BBC staff not to refer to the perpetrators as terrorists , arguing that the term " can be a barrier rather than aid to understanding " . Former BBC reporter Martin Bell was one of those who condemned the memo , accusing the BBC being " overcautious " and noting that the attackers seemed to meet the definition of terrorists . '' Writing in The Spectator '' , Michael Vestey suggested " it ’s almost as if the BBC is afraid of offending suicide bombers in the Muslim world "
July 7 terror attacks
7 July 2005 London bombings
Helen Boaden