BBC Sort of Sorry for Headline

After a poll appeared yesterday on the BBC's website that initially asked "Should Homosexuals Face Execution?" the director of BBC World Service, Peter Horrocks, apologized if it caused any offense.

There was a caveat in the apology regarding the poll -- which was later given the headline "Should Uganda Debate Gay Execution?"

Horrocks wrote, "The original headline on our website was, in hindsight, too stark. We apologise for any offence it caused. But it's important that this does not detract from what is a crucial debate for Africans and the international community. The program was a legitimate and responsible attempt to support a challenging discussion about proposed legislation that advocates the death penalty for those who undertake certain homosexual activities in Uganda -- an important issue where the BBC can provide a platform for debate that otherwise would not exist across the continent and beyond."