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Friday, January 30, 2004

So it looks like I'll be keeping my NUJ card a while longer.

Andrew Gilligan has finally resigned from the BBC over the story which led to the whole Kelly/Hutton affair.

I've been very careful about what I've said about a (now former) BBC colleague -- but I'm sure my opinion has been pretty obvious.

I wouldn't have manned a picket line because of Andrew Gilligan and thankfully now I don't have to cross one because of him.

But still the National union of Journalists misjudges the general mood.

"We are very saddened by the fact that Andrew felt the need to resign," says NUJ deputy general secretary John Fray.

"I believe he could have stayed on but obviously he has been under immense pressure.

"He holds the fact that he believes that his journalism is substantively correct."


Call me old fashioned but I consider it my job to get my journalism completely correct -- not just substantively so.

Will Andrew Gilligan's resignation prompt a spontaneous staff protest in the same way that Greg Dyke's did?

What do you think?


Gilligan resignation statement -- full text:

"I am today resigning from the BBC. I and everyone else involved here have for five months admitted the mistakes we made. We deserved criticism. Some of my story was wrong, as I admitted at the inquiry, and I again apologise for it.

"My departure is at my own initiative. But the BBC collectively has been the victim of a grave injustice.

!If Lord Hutton had fairly considered the evidence he heard, he would have concluded that most of my story was right. The Government did sex up the dossier, transforming possibilities and probabilities into certainties, removing vital caveats; the 45-minute claim was the `classic example' of this; and many in the intelligence services, including the leading expert in WMD, were unhappy about it.

"Thanks to what David Kelly told me and other BBC journalists, in very similar terms, we know now what we did not know before. I pay tribute to David Kelly.

"This report casts a chill over all journalism, not just the BBC's. It seeks to hold reporters, with all the difficulties they face, to a standard that it does not appear to demand of, for instance, Government dossiers. I am comforted by
the fact that public opinion appears to disagree with Lord Hutton and I hope this will strengthen the resolve of the BBC.

"The report has imposed on the BBC a punishment far out of proportion to its or my mistakes, which were honest ones. It is hard to believe now that this all stems from two flawed sentences in one unscripted early-morning interview, never repeated, when I said that the Government "probably knew" that the 45-minute figure was wrong. I attributed this to David Kelly; it was in fact an inference of mine.

"It has been claimed that this was the charge which went round the world, but a cuttings check shows that it did not even get as far as a single Fleet Street newspaper. Nor did the Government mention it in its first three letters of complaint.

"In my view, this helps explain why neither I nor the BBC focused on this phrase as we should have. I explicitly made clear, in my broadcasts, that the 45-minute point was based on real intelligence. I repeatedly said also that I
did not accuse the Government of fabrication, but of exaggeration. I stand by that charge, and it will not go away.

"In Greg Dyke the BBC has lost its finest director general for a generation. He should not have resigned, and I am extremely sorry to see him go. I would like to thank the BBC for its support throughout the extraordinary and terrible ordeal that has been the last seven months. It has defended the right to investigate and report accurately on matters about which the public has a right to know. Save for the admissions I and the BBC have made, my reporting on
the dossier's compilation fulfilled this purpose."


"I love the BBC and I am resigning because I want to protect it. I accept my part in the crisis which has befallen the organisation. But a greater part has been played by the unbalanced judgments of Lord Hutton."



More from the resignation statement:

"I love the BBC and I am resigning because I want to protect it. I accept my part in the crisis which has befallen the organisation. But a greater part has been played by the unbalanced judgments of Lord Hutton."



In his resignation statement, Gilligan said:

"I again apologise for it. My departure is at my own initiative. But the BBC collectively has been the victim of a grave injustice."

In a short statement the BBC said "We recognise this has been a very difficult time for him."


NEWS ALERT
Andrew Gilligan, whose Today programme report sparked the Hutton Inquiry, has resigned from the BBC. More soon.


I'm Huttoned out.

Can we talk about something else now, please?


My final comment on the day's affairs before I trudge home through the snow.

1) Weapons of Mass Destruction have not been found -- David Kay blames the intelligence agencies.

2) Weapons of Mass Destruction have not been found -- Lord Hutton blames the BBC.

Downing Street and the White House escape censure -- even though one of the main reasons for going to war and sacrificing hundreds of lives still has not been proved.

The spin wins.


John Pilger writes about what sounds like an outstanding film about the Khmer Rouge, which I'll be aiming to see as soon as possible.

I went to S-21 in November and found it one of the most harrowing and haunting places I've ever visited.

Pilger says:
"The film has such power that, more than anything I have seen on Cambodia since I was there almost 25 years ago, it moved me deeply, evoking the dread and incredulity that was a presence then."


Thursday, January 29, 2004

So, at the end of what's possibly been the most traumatic day in the history of the BBC it's time to begin taking stock and to look at what the fall-out from the Hutton Report means for the future of the corporation -- and for journalism in Britain.

Whatever your opinion about the conclusions in the Hutton Report, it was hugely damning of the BBC. Nothing short of senior resignations would have satisfied the government, not to mention many of those who pay our wages -- the licence fee payers. The decisions of Gavyn Davies and then Greg Dyke to fall on their swords was good enough even for Downing Street. The government is no doubt reflecting tonight on a comprehensive knockout in its vicious punchup with the Beeb.

Despite what the doom merchants may say, the BBC and its journalism will survive this crisis. The implementation of new safeguards will slowly restore its reputation. And I'm sure that if a story on the scale of September 11th happened tomorrow, most British people would still look to the BBC for impartial and comprehensive news coverage, as I understand a Guardian survey will show tomorrow.

The public demonstrations by staff at the resignation of "Greg" -- as he always signed himself on his staff e-mails -- is hugely significant, a sign of his charisma and the genuine respect with which he is held within the BBC. In how many companies would the workforce down tools in a spontaneous show of support for their former leader?

But we still have not heard from one key player in this sorry affair.

That person was responsible for bringing this crisis about and for tarnishing the reputations of all of us who work for the Corporation.

Tonight, he is still a member of BBC staff.


As I predicted three hours ago:
Media Guardian: Sambrook will not face BBC axe


ZEITGEIST WATCH

Following on from the stupendously tedious Flash Mob craze of last year comes subway party cars.


More on that exploding sperm whale.


The new front page for BBC News Online -- or so Downing Street would wish.


Gilligan wants to stay at the BBC -- others (no names, of course) believe he doesn't deserve to.

National Union of Journalists General Secretary Jeremy Dear says "It is my understanding that Andrew Gilligan wishes to continue working for the BBC.

"There have been no discussions today because of events but he needs to have talks with a union official and BBC management.

"We are backing him and I would like to hear him back on the Today programme."


Much more on this later -- but I'm getting perilously close to returning my NUJ membership card.




Colleagues in the BBC newsroom in West London say Greg Dyke has just made an emotional address to them.

He walked into the newsroom and climbed onto a table to a huge round of applause before telling the amassed journalists that they are the "bedrock" of the corporation.


BBC Washington joins the protest!!




Colleagues at BBC buildings across the country have apparently joined the protests.


Colleagues in London say hundreds of staff have walked out of Television Centre to show their support for former BBC Director General, Greg Dyke.


Blair has accepted the BBC's apology. My take is that this will bring an end to the human sacrifice at the BBC and save the Head of News, Richard Sambrook.


BREAKING NEWS: BBC APOLOGISES

Acting BBC Chairman Lord Ryder says "I have no hestitation in apologising unreservedly for our errors."

He adds: "The departure of Gavyn Davies and Greg Dyke will be regretted throughout the BBC....The BBC must now move forward."

Acting DG Mark Byford says "my task is to lead the organisation through what is a very turbulent period."


Mark Byford appointed acting DG.


Dyke addresses the troops in an e-mail:

"This is the hardest e-mail I’ve ever written.

"In a few minutes I’ll be announcing to the outside world that I’m leaving after four years as Director General. I don’t want to go and I’ll miss everyone here hugely.

"However the management of the BBC was heavily criticised in the Hutton Report and as the Director General I am responsible for the management so it’s right I take responsibility for what happened.

"I accept that the BBC made errors of judgement and I’ve sadly come to the conclusion that it will be hard to draw a line under this whole affair while I am still here. We need closure. We need closure to protect the future of the BBC, not for you or me but for the benefit of everyone out there. It might sound pompous but I believe the BBC really matters.

"Throughout this affair my sole aim as Director General of the BBC has been to defend our editorial independence and to act in the public interest.

"In four years we’ve achieved a lot between us. I believe we’ve changed the place fundamentally and I hope that those changes will last beyond me. The BBC has always been a great organisation but I hope that, over the last four years, I’ve helped to make it a more human place where everyone who works here feels appreciated. If that’s anywhere near true I leave contented, if sad.

"Thank you all for the help and support you’ve given me. This might sound a bit schmaltzy but I really will miss you all. I’ve enjoyed the last four years more than any other time in my working life."



Dyke says the BBC is "an incredibly important organisation in this country" and he hopes his resignation will allow for a "new start" in the corporation.


Dyke says "I hope a line can now be drawn under this whole affair" in resignation statement.




BREAKING NEWS
Greg Dyke has resigned as Director General of the BBC. More soon.


Wednesday, January 28, 2004

The Independent reaches similar conclusions to the one I outlined in this posting over Iraqi WMDs:
Independent: WMD: Now it is Bush's turn to face uncomfortable truths

The Indy spies trouble ahead:
"There is a sense that the WMD issue could present a problem for Mr Bush as he campaigns for re-election.

"The comments he made about the threat posed by Saddam will be held up to scrutiny.

"Senior officials have admitted that the question of flawed intelligence is something the White House will be forced to confront sooner or later."



OFF WITH THEIR HEADS

BBC bosses say they'll wait until the governors have met tomorrow before commenting further on the Hutton Report.

The damage limitation strategy is becoming clear.

The corporation is so shell-shocked by the scope of Lord Hutton's criticisms that it's waiting to see what the morning papers say, and how much support the BBC gets from the press, before deciding whether to put any more heads on the block after Gavyn Davies.


Yuk.


CNN's Michael Holmes talks about yesterday's Ambush near Baghdad, in which two CNN staff were killed.


Channel 4 News's Jon Snow springs to the BBC's defence:

"The likelihood is that the BBC and its fate will now come to dominate the debate rather than the issues surrounding the war.

"As regards the BBC, whatever mistakes were made, government clashes with the state broadcaster are dangerous, there are implications for every journalist. This is very dicey territory.

"We could find that the death of David Kelly ends up robbing Britain of the best public service broadcaster in the world. To the great joy of several newspaper magnates and their empires."


So does media commentator, Emily Bell:

The overall impression, albeit a highly personal and biased one, is that the BBC is still more concerned with the dissemination of unspun fact than either Mr Blair or Mr Campbell.


More heads to roll?
Media Guardian: 'Responsibility may lie with Dyke'

Surely not my mate Greg?!


BBC News Online picks up the landmine-detecting cress story -- and rightly points out that it's a load of old nonsense.


A CONTRASTING VIEW....

...From Tory MP for Henley, Boris Johnson, who says:

"The BBC should tough it out.....We're now going to hear a lot of sanctimonious humbug and piffle from journalists and politicians who've never got a story as good as Andrew Gilligan's -- and quite frankly aren't fit to lick his boots."


The right-wing bloggers (such as Reynolds and Jarvis) can barely type this afternoon, so gleeful are they at the BBC's discomfort.

And who can blame them. It's a black day for the Corporation and I'm as dismayed as anyone at the finding that the BBC's editorial processes were lacking,

I'm not going to defend the indefensible but I would say this.

The BBC is the biggest newsgathering organisation in the world. It employs thousands of journalists and produces hundreds of hours of news on radio, television and online every single day.

The Hutton Report, damning as it is, focuses on one story, put together by one journalist and broadcast by one programme. It does those of us who go to extraordinary lengths to get the facts right a huge disservice to tar all BBC journalism with the same brush.

Andrew Gilligan made a mistake when he claimed the government had "sexed up" its dossier on Iraqi weapons of mass destruction. As a result, one person died -- Dr David Kelly. That's tragic.

But let's look what's happening as I type over at the Senate Armed Services Committee, coincidentally at the same time that the Hutton firestorm is raging. David Kay is telling senators that the intelligence agencies also made a mistake about Iraqi WMDs.

So far more than 500 American soldiers have died.


Too many Mojitos last night at Ceiba (I can recommend the Grilled Beef Ribeye Churrasco) means today is going to be a looooong day.

I have no-one to blame but myself.


I'm going to have to take the rest of the day off. My editorial systems have suddenly come over all defective.
Media Guardian: Hutton delivers damning verdict on BBC




Let's dig out our donkey jackets and fire up the brazier -- it's time to man the picket line.

You go first...I'll join you in a minute. Honest.

Media Guardian: Back Gilligan or face dispute, union tells BBC



We're all fired -- thank God I'm over here.
BBC castigated in Hutton report


Tuesday, January 27, 2004

Following on from this posting, Reuters has gone public and made a stand on the issue of the safety of journalists in Iraq and other hostile environments.

Reuters' stance is brave and deserves the support of all major news organisations.

David Schlesinger, Reuters Global Managing Editor, says:
"For several months, Reuters has patiently and cooperatively attempted to work with the government to resolve....serious issues relating to the safety of journalists in areas of military conflict. Unfortunately no progress has been made. Immediate action is necessary to address these issues.

"...The safety of journalists in Iraq is not improving. The detention and mistreatment of our staff combined with the military's highly charged statements have only served to raise the risks for all journalists working in Iraq. We think it absolutely necessary that this be addressed."


Pentagon -- it's over to you.


RALPH NADER TALKS TO BNI



Another BNI exclusive...and a real one this time.

In the 2000 American presidential election, the veteran consumer affairs campaigner Ralph Nader was accused of helping to put George Bush in the White House by standing as the Green Party's candidate. Critics said he took votes from Al Gore in a number of key states, including Florida.

Nader dismissed the criticism -- and has set up an Exploratory Committee to decide whether he should run again in 2004.

Described as "one of the hundred most significant persons of the Twentieth Century" by Time magazine, I spoke to Ralph Nader in Washington.

As always, the interview's been heavily compressed to keep the file size down. It's 5'19" long and is a 625Kb download. E-mail me if you want it at a higher bitrate.

AUDIOBLOG: RALPH NADER INTERVIEW (.mp3)


The dam is cracking and the truth is finally trickling out -- there are no major WMD stocks in Iraq.

What we've seen over the past 48 hours or so has been fascinating; David Kay, then Powell, Bush and Scott McLellan all finally conceding what critics have been saying all along -- that Iraq probably did not have large chemical or biological stockpiles.

The finger of blame is currently being pointed (especially by former Iraq Survey Group chief, David Kay) at the intelligence agencies for providing dodgy intel. Whoever's at fault, the end result is the same -- the British and American people were sold a pup.

President Bush this afternoon skirted around the issue by saying that "There is no doubt in my mind the world is a better place without Saddam Hussein."

There's no doubt in my mind either -- but that's not why we went to war. Bush's comments represent a retrospective justification for the Iraq conflict that just doesn't hold up.

Paul Koring from Canada's Globe and Mail is is among those to spot how the war is being re-spun.


Swansea may not have landmines (I think) -- but it does have bad-tempered pensioners just waiting to rob people of their limbs (thanks, Alex):
BBC News: Parking rage - driver loses leg


More on the death of two CNN staff in Iraq:
BBC News: Two CNN staff die in Iraq ambush


Theatre of News? Theatre of Shite more like.
Media Guardian: Unveiled: ITV's 1m 'theatre of news'

ITN would be better off spending its money on good old fashioned newsgathering rather than virtual reality gimmickry.


Sad news from Baghdad:
Reuters: CNN Says Two Employees Killed in Iraq Ambush




It's not very often I hear an album that blows me away -- it happens once a year at best.

It happened last night.

In a package from London, along with a bundle of essential spares for my artificial leg, which I'd neglected to bring to Washington and subsequently regretted, came a copy of Up All Night by Australian folksters The Waifs.

I heard one of their tracks on a compilation from Tony and I finally decided to splash out for the CD.

I'm glad I did. It's a rocking mix of country, blues and folk. Go buy.

(See a video of The Waifs at last year's Cambridge Folk Festival here.)


Anyone know anything about this?


DC SNOWBLOGGING

Never mind dodging bullets and mortar fire, last night I risked severe frostbite to bring you my first videoblog from Washington.

I headed down to the Lincoln Memorial after work with the DV camera to catch it, and the surrounding monuments, while they were still dusted with fresh snow.

The videofile is 1'22" long and is a 1Mb download.

VIDEOBLOG: DC IN THE SNOW (.wmv)


Monday, January 26, 2004

Working in Washington isn't always the jet-setting fun it's cracked up to be.

Take this evening, for example, Being in DC means I'm missing the new series of I'm a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here!

It's times like this that I pine for home.....or not.


HERE COMES THE MOTOMAN....

More Cambodia news...this article in the New York Times is excellent -- far superior to the crap that Nicholas D. Kristof has been writing from the Kingdom.

Wi-Fi on the back of a moto, in a project developed by First Mile Solutions.

It's a fascinating initiative -- and I wish I'd come across it while I was in Cambodia in November because it would have made a fantastic piece.

As the Times article makes clear, the project doesn't just enable Cambodian websurfers to download porn and MP3s. It's helping doctors make more accurate diagnoses and save lives as well.

A good news story about Cambodia -- and it's not about prostitution. Wonders will never cease.

(Read more about the Motoman project here.)


A follow up story on the assassination of Cambodian trade unionist, Chea Vichea.

"This assassination will surely exacerbate the climate of fear for workers, journalists, environment and human rights activists who speak out or publicly demonstrate to express their views," says Human Rights Watch.

Meanwhile, there's plenty of food for thought in HRW's annual global survey, which is out today.




Here's a definite candidate for Amputee of the Week, although the media circus surrounding Bethany Hamilton's story is thoroughly distasteful, if utterly predictable.

Maybe I should take a leaf out of her agent's book. Brand Stuart Hughes. I like the sound of that.


Danish researchers claim they've developed a genetically modified plant which changes colour when there are landmines present.

Great idea -- but how are they going to sow the seeds in a minefield in the first place?


My recent postings about the non-unionised workforce and companies such as Wal-Mart prompts a colleague to give me a copy of Nickel and Dimed by Barbara Ehrenreich.

Ehrenreich, a journalist and commentator, takes a variety of low paid, deadend jobs -- a waitress, cleaner, nursing home assistant and Walmart "associate" -- in an attempt to discover whether it's possible to live on the borderline poverty wages on offer.

Ehrenreich paints a depressing picture of poor diet and healthcare, despotic managers and workers who've had the life sucked out of them by their daily struggle just to survive.

It's a sparsely written and powerful insight into what life is like for millions of blue collar Americans.


IT'S SNOWING!!!

Glad I brought the thermals I bought for Iceland with me because I sure need them today.

CNN: Cold clamps down on Eastern U.S.






I've come to realise that the relationship between producer and correspondent is rather like the bond between a faithful dog and its owner (although I'll leave you to decide which is the dog and which the owner.)

A radio producing colleague returned from Iowa late last week to find me working away happily with Justin Webb -- "her" correspondent, as she put it. The experience, she said, was rather like coming home early to find your husband in bed with someone else.

I knew exactly what she meant because she'd been working in Iowa with someone I regard as "my" correspondent.

Once you've worked with a correspondent for a while you get to know their little quirks and foibles....when to stand back and let them stamp their feet and when to upbraid them like the spoilt children they so often are.

Sometimes, the process leaves you with a deep loathing for the person you spend your working life trying to get and keep on air. When it works, though, it leads to a strong friendship born out of shared experiences under extreme stress -- rather like a perverse media marriage of sorts.

We proposed a Reality TV-style "Correspondent Swap" -- she could have my reporter and I'd have hers.


Sunday, January 25, 2004

My new cafe of choice for weekend brunch -- Tryst up in Adams Morgan.

Great coffee and good vibes. Unbeatable!


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