[ad_1]
Prince William has launched an unprecedented attack on the BBC for its handling of claims relating to 1995 Panorama interview with his late mother, after the BBC apologized for the matter.
The prince, who ranks second on the throne, said on Thursday that Martin Bashir’s interview with Princess Diana of Wales had worsened the relationship between his parents, who separated in 1992 and decided to divorce. in 1996, after the broadcast of the interview. .
The prince spoke after an investigation found that Bashir had lied to get an interview with the princess in 1995, using deceptive methods that were later obscured by an “unfortunately ineffective” internal investigation by Lord Tony Hall, which later became the general manager of the station.
The prince said the deceptive way Bashir got the interview “substantially influenced” what his mother said in the interview, in which he said the marriage was “full” because of the relationship. Prince Charles, her husband, with Camilla, now his wife.
“The interview was an important contribution to worsening my parents’ relationship and has since hurt countless others,” Prince William said in a statement, which he also gave in the form of a broadcast to ITV News , the BBC’s main rival.
He report in an interview with Lord John Dyson, a former UK Supreme Court judge, was published on Thursday and offers a scathing account of Bashir’s use of forged documents to gain access to the princess, before repeatedly lying to cover up. do the tracks.
Prince William making his statement, published Thursday night: the BBC’s failures had added to the “fear, paranoia and isolation” of his mother’s last years © PA
The prince said it gave her “indescribable sadness” to learn that the BBC’s failures had “significantly contributed” to the “fear, paranoia and isolation” he remembered of recent years with her.
What saddened him most, he continued, was that if the BBC had properly investigated the complaints and concerns first raised in 1995, his mother, who died in August 1997, would have known she had been deceived.
“It was failed not only by a rogue journalist, but by BBC leaders who looked the other way instead of asking the hard questions,” he said. “I am just happy to be here Panorama the program has no legitimacy and should never be rebroadcast. He effectively established a false narrative that, for more than a quarter of a century, has been marketed by the BBC and others. ”
Even after a quarter of a century, the official investigation is a blow to the reputation of the UK public service broadcaster and some of its top current and former executives.
Diana’s interview with Bashir, aired by the corporation’s flagship research program, became one of the most important firsts of the time. She included her remark: “There were three of us in this marriage, so I was a little crowded,” a reference to the relationship of her husband, Prince Charles, with the woman he would later marry, Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall.
According to the investigation, Bashir forged bank statements and showed them to Diana’s brother Charles, Earl Spencer, persuading him to help Bashir access them. Documents suggested that members of the royal house were paid to keep the princess under surveillance.
Bashir, who resigned from the corporation last week, said forging documents was “an action I deeply regret,” but insisted he had “no influence” on Diana’s decision to participate.
Dyson’s findings are highly critical of Hall and his part in a 1996 internal investigation into Bashir’s conduct, which concluded that Bashir was an “honest and honorable man.” Dyson said that by not challenging Bashir’s “serious and inexplicable lies,” he neglected to check his account with Spencer.
Living room he was director general of news and current affairs at the time of the internal investigation and went on to direct the BBC for seven years until his resignation last year. He remains president of the National Gallery.
Dyson finds that Hall “could not reasonably conclude” that Bashir was honest. It also rejects the BBC’s claim that there was no cover-up of wrongdoing in its own reports and in answers to questions from outside journalists.
“Without justification, the BBC did not meet the high standards of integrity and transparency,” Dyson wrote.
Hall apologized Thursday and said “in retrospect” there were other measures “we could and should have done.”
“I was wrong in giving Martin Bashir the advantage of doubt,” he added.
Lord John Birt, the BBC’s director general at the time of the interview, said it was now clear that there was “a rogue reporter” in Panorama who “fabricated an elaborate, detailed but utterly false account of his dealings with Earl Spencer and Diana, Princess of Wales.”
“This is a shocking task about the BBC’s enduring commitment to honest journalism; and it is a matter of the greatest regret that 25 years have passed until the full truth emerges,” he added.
Tim Davie, Hall’s successor as director general, agreed that the BBC “was far from what the public has a right to expect”.
“The BBC should have made more efforts to get to the bottom of what happened at the time and be more transparent about what it knew,” he said. “While the BBC cannot turn back the clock after a quarter of a century, we can make a full and unconditional apology. The BBC is offering it today.”
[ad_2]
Source link
