Search Results for: “Newsnight”

Former Editor Of Rupert Murdoch’s London Times Named Head Of News At BBC

By NANCY TARTAGLIONE, International Editor | Tuesday, 16 April 2013 09:52 UKTags: BBC, The Times

James Harding resigned as editor of Rupert Murdoch’s The Times neswspaper in December saying, “It has been made clear to me that News Corporation would like to appoint a new editor of The Times.” Reports suggested that Harding’s departure was the result of upset at The Times’ parent company over the paper’s somewhat critical stance during the phone-hacking scandal that had engulfed News Corp.’s UK press arm, News International. When Harding starts his new job as director of news and current affairs at the BBC on August 12, he’ll be joining another company that has seen its share of recent crises.

The BBC’s news division has been plagued by troubles in the past six months including the Jimmy Savile scandal, botched reporting at the flagship Newsnight program and walkouts by journalists. Its Panorama program is drawing fire this week over allegations that London School of Economics students were put in harm’s way during the filming of a documentary in North Korea. Read More »

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BBC Accused Of Misleading UK Students For Undercover Filming Of North Korea Doc

By NANCY TARTAGLIONE, International Editor | Monday, 15 April 2013 14:03 UKTags: BBC

After the drama that played out in the BBC‘s news division late last year amid the Jimmy Savile and Newsnight crises, the broadcaster has come under further fire regarding one of its news shows. The London School of Economics believes some of its students were endangered during a recent trip to North Korea on which a team of undercover BBC journalists filmed a documentary for the Panorama program. The LSE and its students union have demanded that the BBC withdraw the show which is due to air tonight, but the broadcaster is still going forward. LSE director Craig Calhoun wrote on Twitter today: “Producers of Panorama seem not to have learned any lessons from recent BBC scandals. Consciously chose to endanger LSE students. For what?” In a statement, the BBC said “public interest” in airing the report “is very strong indeed.” It added that such a program “involves some difficult judgements, editorially, practically and ethically and that is why it has been handled at a senior level.” Read More »

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Global Showbiz Briefs: New BBC Chief Takes Reins, HBO & Canal Plus, China’s TV Docu Market, Bona Film Group

By NANCY TARTAGLIONE, International Editor | Wednesday, 3 April 2013 05:00 UKTags: BBC, Bona Film Group, Canal Plus, HBO

New BBC Chief Says “Best Days Lie Ahead”
Today was the first day on the job for the BBC’s new director general, Tony Hall. The broadcaster’s former head of news returned to the Beeb after more than a decade as CEO of the Royal Opera House. The organization he confronted today is in far different shape than it was when he left. After going into crisis mode last October when the Jimmy Savile sex abuse scandal broke open, the BBC was rocked by the mishandling of a Newsnight report that mistakenly identified a senior politician as an alleged pedophile. Those events led to the resignation of former director general George Entwistle after only 54 days on the job. Mark Thompson, Entwistle’s predecessor, left in September to become CEO of The New York Times Company and under his watch austerity measures were put in place after the license fee that was frozen until 2017. Two major unions went out on strike at the BBC last Thursday in protest over what was referred to as “a modern-day BBC sweatshop” along with bullying claims at the company. Hall made a handful of appointments prior to starting at the BBC, but has yet to name a head of news or head of television. In an email to staff today, he said, “With imagination and hard work, the BBC’s best days lie ahead of us.” Read More »

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BBC Staff To Strike Over Easter; Union Calls Broadcaster “Modern-Day Sweatshop”

By NANCY TARTAGLIONE, International Editor | Thursday, 21 March 2013 10:52 UKTags: BBC, Jimmy Savile

UPDATE, WRITETHRU, 4:33 AM: The National Union of Journalists and media and entertainment union Bectu have set a 12-hour walkout at the BBC starting at noon March 28. The action coincides with the start of an indefinite work-to-rule period in which employees do no more than the minimum required by their contracts. The move could affect Easter scheduling and will be the second walkout in recent weeks over compulsory layoffs and excessive workloads, which the unions believe are compromising quality journalism and programming. That’s especially notable given the high-profile snafus at flagship news magazine Newsnight late last year as the corporation was dealing with fallout from the Jimmy Savile sex scandal.

Bectu says management is attempting to create “a modern-day BBC sweatshop” while it forges ahead with a cost-cutting initiative which will zap 2,000 jobs across the group. The BBC has been tightening its belt since revenues were cut drastically through 2016 due to a freeze on the TV license fees that help support it. The upcoming action is also taking a stance on bullying and harassment. Employees have given evidence to the ongoing internal review that sprang from the Savile revelations. The union says Read More »

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BBC Releases 3,000 Documents From Inquiry Into Jimmy Savile/’Newsnight’ Scandal

By NANCY TARTAGLIONE, International Editor | Friday, 22 February 2013 13:24 UKTags: BBC, Jimmy Savile

The BBC this morning published 3,000 pages of interviews and correspondence related to the Jimmy Savile sex abuse scandal and the 2011 shelving of a Newsnight program that would have revealed the late host’s alleged crimes. The documents include few earthshattering revelations, but are laced with internal criticisms and email chains that provide a window onto the workings of the venerable broadcaster whose armor has been severely dinged in the past several months as a result of the combined crises. (Read the full report here.)

The documents, provided by the Pollard Inquiry into the handling of the Newsnight affair, include testimony from key witnesses like Newsnight anchor Jeremy Paxman, whose evidence has been the focus of much scrutiny given its criticisms of management. He told interviewers that the Pollard Inquiry was being conducted in a “ridiculous fashion” and called the BBC’s behavior regarding the Newsnight report “contemptible.” He further said he’d been surprised by then-editor Peter Rippon’s response when Paxman wanted to pursue the Savile investigation after learning that rival ITV was about to air its own exposé. According to Paxman, Rippon said “I just can’t do this.” Paxman contends the use of the word ‘can’t’ was “very, very unusual… and I didn’t say, ‘What do you mean ‘can’t'? Someone has told you that you can’t, or you physically can’t face it?’” Paxman says he now believes it was a mixture of both. (The BBC said yesterday that Rippon would take over a newly-created post as editor of the BBC online archive). Paxman added that Savile’s behavior was “common gossip” around the corporation, although much of his testimony has been redacted. The BBC said today that 3% of the overall information has been blacked out “for a very limited number of legal reasons.” Read More »

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Global Showbiz Briefs: Pistorius-Steenkamp, ‘Reclaim’, Savile Fallout, David Haslingden

By NANCY TARTAGLIONE, International Editor | Friday, 22 February 2013 04:31 UKTags: BBC, David Haslingden, Global Showbiz Briefs, ITV, Jimmy Savile, Mentorn Media, Reclaim

BBC Three Orders Reeva Steenkamp Special
Fast-turnaround specialiast Mentorn Media is at it again. The producer has been commissioned by BBC Three for a quickie doc about the murder of Reeva Steenkamp. Steenkamp’s shooting death has been making headlines since she was killed on Valentine’s Day with star athlete Oscar Pistorius accused of murder. He has pleaded not guilty. Nick London is producing and directing for BBC Three. Rick Edwards, who presented Paralympics coverage for Channel 4, will host. Mentorn’s credits include Ricky Gervais’ An Idiot Abroad for Sky and HBO documentary For Neda. It also recently made fast-turnaround docs about Hurricane Sandy and the Aurora, Colorado massacre. Mentorn’s sister company Passion Distribution is handling sales.

Luketic, Former MGM Exec Sutherland Team On Oz Thriller
Los Angeles-based Australian director Alan White is set to direct Reclaim, a psychological thriller about an American couple who come to Australia to adopt a child after their unborn child dies in a car accident. Due to shoot in Oz later this year, the film is the first from a co-venture between U.S.-based Australian director Robert Luketic and Ian Sutherland’s Origin Productions, who will serve as producers with Brian and Josh Etting of L.A.–based Garlin Pictures. Sutherland, a former EVP of international theatrical distribution for MGM, and Luketic have been developing projects for several years. It will be the first Aussie film for White since 2000’s Risk. The screenplay is by Luke Davies (Candy) and Carmine Gaeta. Casting is underway. Arclight Films, which is selling worldwide rights, pitched the project to buyers at the Berlin festival’s European Film Market.- Don Groves
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In Latest Headache For The BBC, Journalists Stage 24-Hour Strike

By NANCY TARTAGLIONE, International Editor | Monday, 18 February 2013 11:06 UKTags: BBC

In an effort to defend their jobs and stem what they consider the compromise of quality journalism and programming, members of the National Union of Journalists working for the BBC went on strike just after midnight local time on Monday. The 24-hour walkout comes as workers are “angry and frustrated at the poor decisions being taken at the top of the BBC” regarding staffing and layoffs. The public broadcaster has been tightening its belt since revenues were cut drastically through 2016 due to a freeze on the TV license fees that help support it. According to the union, 7,000 jobs have been shed since 2004 and another 2,000 cuts are expected. The BBC has also been hit by scandals related to the flagship Newsnight program which resulted in the resignation of former director general George Entwistle late last year amid what’s been termed “one of the worst management crises in the BBC’s history.” Entwistle’s replacement, Tony Hall, comes aboard in March. Already last week, Hall caused some controversy with his appointment of a former Labour Party minister to a highly-paid senior position. Scheduling was due to be disrupted throughout the day across the BBC’s radio and TV properties with news and talk shows replaced by reality reruns.

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New BBC Chief Begins To Fashion Senior Management Team

By NANCY TARTAGLIONE, International Editor | Thursday, 14 February 2013 11:49 UKTags: BBC

Incoming BBC director general Tony Hall has named James Purnell as director of strategy and digital and has expanded Tim Davie’s BBC Worldwide role. Meanwhile, former head of news, Helen Boaden, is going back to radio. The shifts come as Hall prepares to take over at the head of the broadcaster in March. He does so following the late-2012 sex-abuse and editorial scandals that plagued the corporation and resulted in the resignation of former director general George Entwistle after only 54 days on the job. (The moves also come one day after it was revealed that civil claims have been filed against the BBC on behalf of 31 alleged victims of late host Jimmy Savile.) Hall today said, “I am building a senior team that will define the BBC and public service broadcasting for the next decade. It will be a team that is made up of outstanding talent from outside the BBC combined with the best people from within.” He noted that more changes are to come in the next months, notably the appointment of a new head of news and a new director of BBC Television.

Boaden, who stepped aside in November amid an inquiry into the controversial cancellation of an investigative report by the BBC’s flagship current affairs program, Newsnight, later returned to her post but will now segue out of the division, becoming director of BBC Radio. She was formerly a controller of BBC Radio 4. Read More »

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Late BBC Host Jimmy Savile’s Abused Children On Pubcaster’s Premises, Report Finds

By THE DEADLINE TEAM | Friday January 11, 2013 @ 3:41am PSTTags: BBC, Jimmy Savile

Joe Utichi contributes to Deadline’s UK coverage

UPDATE, 4:49 AM: The BBC has responded to the findings of this mornig’s report that exposes the extent of sexual abuse by former BBC host Jimmy Savile. In a statement, the broadcaster said: “As we have made clear, the BBC is appalled that some of the offences were committed on its premises. We would like to restate our sincere apology to the victims of these crimes. The BBC will continue to work with the police to help them investigate these matters. We have also set up the Dame Janet Smith Review to help us understand how these crimes could have been committed and how we can avoid them happening ever again.”

PREVIOUS: While the scandal-plagued BBC has ceased making headlines on a daily basis, a report on sexual abuse allegations against late BBC personality Jimmy Savile could turn attention back to the corporation’s past. The ‘Giving Victims a Voice’ report reveals that the former Top Of The Pops host committed 214 criminal offenses against children and young people – some as young as 8 – over four decades. Released by the Metropolitan Police and the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children, the report says Savile used the celebrity he earned through high-profile BBC hosting gigs like Top Of The Pops and Jim’ll Fix It to gain access to children and dupe institutions, including the BBC itself, Read More »

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UK Parliament Slams BBC Over “Cavalier Use Of Public Money”

By NANCY TARTAGLIONE, International Editor | Thursday, 20 December 2012 12:53 UKTags: BBC, George Entwistle, Jimmy Savile

A day after it faced harsh criticism in a review of its response to the Jimmy Savile/Newsnight crisis, the BBC has taken a lambasting from British lawmakers over a severance payment to former director general George Entwistle. The Public Accounts Committee of Parliament slammed the pubcaster for a “cavalier use of public money” when it agreed to pay Entwistle £450,000 ($714,000) upon his November resignation, twice the provisions in his contract. Entwistle resigned amid furor sparked by the BBC’s handling of the Savile sex scandal and questionable editorial decisions made at flagship current affairs program Newsnight. “Public servants should not be rewarded for failure. But that was exactly what happened when the BBC Trust paid off [Entwistle],” the committee said. In response, BBC Trust chairman Lord Patten again defended the move to swiftly resolve Entwistle’s severance, telling BBC Radio 4 today, “The legal advice we had is: if we fought, we would have fetched up a bigger bill.” He also called the committee’s report “shabby.” The committee said it has asked for an official examination of the BBC’s severance payments and benefits for senior managers which have totaled over £4M to 10 people since 2010.

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UPDATE: Inquiry Finds Sex Abuse/Editorial Scandal Is “One Of The Worst Management Crises” In BBC History

By NANCY TARTAGLIONE, International Editor | Wednesday, 19 December 2012 12:50 UKTags: BBC, Jimmy Savile, Mark Thompson

UPDATE, 4:50 AM : A review into the cancellation of a BBC Newsnight program that would have revealed allegations of rampant sexual abuse by late BBC personality Jimmy Savile has been released. In the report, overseen by former Sky News chief Nick Pollard, are strong criticisms of the BBC Trust along with senior BBC executives past and present. The review (read it here) found that the BBC response to the scandal that blew open in October when rival ITV aired a program outlining allegations against Savile, was “chaos and confusion.” Pollard said, “The efforts to get to the truth behind the Savile story proved beyond the combined efforts of the senior management, legal department, corporate communications team and anyone else for well over a month.” Former BBC director general George Entwistle and BBC1 controller Danny Cohen didn’t look hard enough at the issues at the time the Newsnight report was shelved in late 2011 and tributes to Savile aired on BBC1, the review found. This was especially in light of emails that had been sent to Entwistle and Cohen, but apparently not read, that mentioned a “darker side” of Savile. Newsnight editor Peter Rippon is to be replaced but head of news Helen Boaden’s October offer to resign was not accepted and she will return to work tomorrow. Her deputy, Stephen Mitchell, resigned just after the Pollard report Read More »

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BBC Directors Face Parliament Over Ongoing Crisis: “We Shot Ourselves In The Foot”

By NANCY TARTAGLIONE, International Editor | Tuesday, 27 November 2012 14:36 UKTags: BBC, Jimmy Savile, Mark Thompson

In a three-hour session this morning, BBC Trust chairman Lord Chris Patten and acting BBC director general Tim Davie answered questions about ongoing troubles at the broadcaster. This was the same panel that grilled George Entwistle in October, two weeks before he was forced to resign as director general. Patten’s and Davie’s turns were somewhat less fraught, although Patten was often taken to task by one BBC-averse MP. Both Patten and Davie owned up to a “bad journalistic error” that led to the running of a recent Newsnight report that falsely implied former Margaret Thatcher adviser Lord McAlpine was a pedophile. However, Davie said he thought cancelling the 60 Minutes-like flagship program would be an “overreaction.” Disciplinary hearings are currently underway with the dozen or so people involved in the report. Read More »

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CEO, Board Members Exit Australia’s Quickflix; Trading Still Suspended

By NANCY TARTAGLIONE, International Editor | Tuesday, 20 November 2012 15:32 UKTags: HBO, Quickflix

The CEO and two board members of Australian online DVD rental and streaming service Quickflix are leaving the company. Quickflix last week requested its stock be temporarily suspended from trading in Australia, pending an announcement of a new strategic investor. That suspension was expected to be short-lived but will now remain in effect until late next week. Today, the company announced CEO Chris Taylor had resigned and will leave in March 2013. Founder and exec chairman Stephen Langsford will assume the role of CEO at that time. Also, non-executive directors Justin Milne and Susan Hunter are resigning from the board, although Hunter will remain as company secretary. HBO paid $10.7M for a 15.7% stake in Quickflix in February, but the service took a $1.87M operating loss in the quarter ending September 30 as its cash reserves dwindled to $2.28M. The company has 115,592 paying subscribers. Read More »

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Global Showbiz Briefs: BBC, BAFTA Honors, Stockholm Festival, Screen Australia

By THE DEADLINE TEAM | Monday November 19, 2012 @ 10:01pm PSTTags: BAFTA, BBC, Screen Australia

Outsider Expected To Replace George Entwistle At BBC
Speculation about who will replace George Entwistle as director general of the BBC is growing in the UK. BBC Trust chairman Lord Patten has promised the selection won’t be as drawn out as it was when it came to naming Entwistle in the first place. While some editorials have suggested the likes of BBC head of news Helen Boaden, who is on sabbatical owing to her own involvement in the corporation’s Jimmy Savile scandal, The Guardian suggests that Patten will favor outside contenders, even if the ongoing crisis might make the job look a little unattractive. Entwistle’s shock resignation after just 54 days as director general came earlier this month, as the BBC’s current affairs program Newsnight became embroiled in a second child sex scandal after the Savile affair, when it made false allegations against former Margaret Thatcher adviser Lord McAlpine. He got £185k worth of damages from the corporation last week. The Telegraph now reports he is planning a £500k a suit against rival broadcaster ITV for revealing his identity in an interview with prime minister David Cameron. – Joe Utichi Read More »

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Lawyers’ Letter Raises Questions About When Mark Thompson Learned Of Alleged Jimmy Savile Abuse At The BBC: NYT

By THE DEADLINE TEAM | Friday November 16, 2012 @ 3:07am PSTTags: BBC, Jimmy Savile, Mark Thompson, The New York Times Company

Joe Utichi contributes to Deadline’s UK coverage

Just four days into his new job as CEO of The New York Times Company, Mark Thompson is again the subject of an article in its flagship newspaper. A story published today by The New York Times says a new piece of information “raises questions” about assertions Thompson has made with regard to when he learned of allegations of sexual abuse against late BBC host Jimmy Savile. Thompson told the NYT in October, “During my time as director general of the BBC, I never heard any allegations or received any complaints about Jimmy Savile.” He has also maintained that he knew nothing of a cancelled investigation by the BBC‘s flagship current affairs program Newsnight into the claims against Savile. But the NYT reports today that a letter sent by lawyers eight days before Thompson left the BBC in September reveals he was involved in “aggressive” legal action pertaining to the Savile story. The letter, sent on behalf of Thompson and news chief Helen Boaden, threatened Rupert Murdoch’s Sunday Times newspaper with “defamation proceedings” if it were to publish an article alleging the pair had orchestrated a cover-up over the scuppered Newsnight broadcast.

Related:
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Latest Fiasco At BBC Turns Up The Heat On Incoming NYT CEO

The NYT, which has closely scrutinized Thompson’s role in the saga, says the letter has been revealed to include a summary of the abuse alleged against Savile, and the fact that some of the abuse was alleged to have taken place on BBC premises. A Thompson aide told the NYT that Thompson orally authorized the sending of the letter but did not know the details of its contents. “It’s not clear if he was shown it,” the aide said, “but he doesn’t remember reading it.”

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UK Media Crisis: ITV Under Fire Over David Cameron Interview On Top Morning Show

By THE DEADLINE TEAM | Thursday November 15, 2012 @ 10:31am PSTTags: BBC, David Cameron, ITV, Jimmy Savile

Joe Utichi contributes to Deadline’s UK coverage

The ongoing crisis in the British media has drawn in a new player. As the BBC continues to sift through the scandals in its news division, rival broadcaster ITV is facing scrutiny from regulator Ofcom over one of its own news programs. ITV’s Today-style This Morning show will have to answer whether a recent interview with Prime Minister David Cameron breached the broadcasting code by failing to provide a “right of reply” to former Margaret Thatcher adviser Lord McAlpine when he was incorrectly linked to child sex abuse allegations, The Guardian reports. Host Phillip Schofield was forced to apologize after he confronted Cameron with a list of alleged perpetrators he had gleaned in “about three minutes” on the Internet, and the list was briefly made visible to the cameras. Read More »

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Global Showbiz Briefs: More BBC Fallout, Quickflix Trading Halt, Lachlan Murdoch On Ten, Screen Australia Funds New Pics

By THE DEADLINE TEAM | Monday November 12, 2012 @ 10:35pm PSTTags: BBC, Quickflix, Screen Australia

BBC Probe: “Unacceptable” Journalistic/Management Failures
More senior BBC staff could leave the corporation as an internal report into the Newsnight fiasco that cost former director general George Entwistle his post draws damning conclusions. The investigation by BBC Scotland director Ken MacQuarrie concluded that “unacceptable” journalistic and management failures caused the broadcast of false claims against a senior political figure. Newsnight aired the allegations of child sexual abuse in its November 2 program, but didn’t name the man, later revealed to be Lord McAlpine. As a result, it didn’t offer the retired adviser to Margaret Thatcher a right of reply as BBC editorial guidelines mandated, and it was subsequently revealed that the victim had mistaken the identity of his attacker. “Basic editorial checks were not completed,” the report said. Read More »

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UPDATE: BBC’s Interim Director General Emails Staff; Broadcaster Clarifies “Stepping Aside” Of News Chief Helen Boaden

By NANCY TARTAGLIONE, International Editor | Monday, 12 November 2012 11:20 UKTags: BBC, Mark Thompson, The New York Times Company

2ND UPDATE 3:20 AM: Following Saturday’s resignation of BBC director general George Entwistle, the BBC Trust appointed Tim Davie, an executive from outside the news chain, to become acting director. A permanent director is to be appointed in the next few weeks, but in the meantime, Davie has written to BBC employees. He sent an email to staff this morning, which The Guardian has posted in its entirety. In part, it reads: “The BBC is a precious institution and I am determined to give the BBC the clarity and leadership it deserves in the next few weeks. What I will also do is continue what George set out – to work tirelessly on getting rid of anything that gets in the way of delivering the best of British creativity to our audiences. There will be no handbrake turn.” Read More »

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Rupert Murdoch And His UK Newspapers Comment On BBC Turmoil

By NANCY TARTAGLIONE, International Editor | Sunday, 11 November 2012 16:27 UKTags: BBC, George Entwistle, Rupert Murdoch, Twitter

Ongoing and growing problems at the BBC have stirred a media maelstrom that is beginning to rival the one surrounding the phone-hacking scandal at Rupert Murdoch’s UK papers. And the Murdoch press seems to be reveling in a little bit of schadenfreude after last night’s resignation of BBC director general George Entwistle. The Sun newspaper’s front page today calls Entwistle “Gormless George” and blares: “Bye Bye Chump.” And an editorial in The Sunday Times suggests it is time for BBC Trust chairman Chris Patten to exit: “Last night Lord Patten put his poodle out of his misery. If he has any sense of honour, he should take responsibility for promoting his creature and go too,” it reads. But while Patten today acknowledged the possibility that he may have to leave if public trust is not restored in the BBC, he also told the Murdoch-controlled Sky News, “I’m not going to this morning take my marching orders from Mr. Murdoch’s newspapers.”

Murdoch himself has also been busy on Twitter, posting ahead of Entwistle’s ankling: “BBC getting into deeper mess. After Savile scandal, now prominent news program falsely names senior pol as paedophile.” Read More »

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