Scottish independence: Crowd protests against 'BBC bias'

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Bias protest
Image caption,
The crowd gathered outside the BBC Scotland headquarters in Glasgow

A large crowd gathered outside BBC Scotland's Glasgow HQ to protest about coverage of the referendum.

Police said up to 1,000 people took part although other observers suggested a much higher figure for the crowd.

The protesters said BBC coverage had been biased against independence.

A BBC spokesperson said: "We believe our coverage has been fair and impartial and has adhered fully to the requirements of our Editorial and Referendum Guidelines."

Protesters gathered outside the BBC's Pacific Quay offices at about 14:00.

They draped a banner over the entrance to the building calling for the BBC's political editor Nick Robinson to be sacked.

Earlier this week, Mr Robinson clashed with First Minister Alex Salmond at a media conference.

Mr Salmond accused Mr Robinson of "heckling" him at a press conference in Edinburgh for international journalists

Mr Robinson was later accused by "Yes" campaigners of producing a report that wrongly claimed Mr Salmond had ignored his question.

A BBC response said it considered Mr Robinson's questions were valid and the overall report balanced and impartial, in line with editorial guidelines.

The exchange came after the BBC reported that the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) would move its registered headquarters to London if Scots voted for independence.

Mr Salmond said the Treasury had leaked details of an RBS notice to markets in breach of financial regulations.