Tag: BBC

BBC Chairman Made ‘Significant Errors of Judgement’ Over Boris Johnson’s Loan, MPs Say

BBC Chair Richard Sharp made “significant errors of judgement” when failing to declare his role in the facilitation of a loan to the then Prime Minister Boris Johnson, a Parliamentary committee has said. Sharp is under investigation over potential conflicts of interests after allegations emerged that he had helped secure an £800,000 ($987,000) loan guarantee…


Commissioner Quits Probe Into BBC Chairman’s Appointment Over Conflict of Interest

Public Appointments Commissioner William Shawcross has recused himself from the investigation into Richard Sharp’s appointment as BBC chairman because he has met Sharp in the past. Shawcross said on Jan. 23 that he would review the competition that led to Sharp’s appointment after allegations emerged that Sharp had helped secure an £800,000 ($987,000) loan guarantee…


BBC Chairman Probed Over Alleged Role in Helping Boris Johnson Secure Loan

BBC Chairman Richard Sharp is under investigation over potential conflicts of interests after allegations emerged that he had helped secure an £800,000 ($987,000) loan guarantee for former Prime Minister Boris Johnson. The Sunday Times alleged that Sharp, a Tory donor and BBC chair candidate at the time, was involved in talks about financing Johnson when…


Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Lawsuit Takes Aim at Our (Dis)Information Overlords

Commentary At this point, references to George Orwell’s dystopian masterpiece “1984” are cliché. The prevalence of authoritarian government control over what we see and hear is so unanimous that the analogy is hardly insightful. But still—what else better encapsulates the perfect inversion of truth as our regime’s standard operating procedure? Robert F. Kennedy Jr., founder…


UK Summons Chinese Ambassador Over Beating of BBC Journalist

The UK’s Foreign Office has summoned Chinese Ambassador Zheng Zeguang to explain the treatment of a BBC journalist, foreign secretary James Cleverly confirmed on Tuesday. Foreign Office minister David Rutley told Parliament earlier in the day that the department will demand a “full and thorough explanation” from the Chinese ambassador. Edward Lawrence, a BBC reporter in China,…


Downing Street: Arrest of BBC Reporter in China ‘Unacceptable’

The arrest of British journalist in China is “shocking and unacceptable,” Downing Street said on Monday after a BBC journalist was detained and allegedly beaten by the police when reporting on anti-zero-COVID protests in Shanghai. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s spokesman also urged Beijing to respect Chinese people’s right to protest. Foreign secretary James Cleverly and a…


BBC Made ‘Significant Editorial Failings’ in Coverage of Anti-Semitic Attack: UK Watchdog

The BBC committed “significant editorial failings” in its coverage of an anti-Semitic attack on Jewish students in London, the UK’s media watchdog Ofcom has concluded. On Nov. 29, 2021, while a group of Jewish students were travelling on a privately-hired Hanukkah party bus in London’s Oxford Street, they came under attack from a group of…


Ex-BBC DJ Jailed for Stalking Presenter Jeremy Vine and Others

A former BBC local radio DJ and YouTube host has been jailed for over five years after being convicted of stalking charges against four people including the broadcaster Jeremy Vine. On Aug. 5, Alex Belfield, 42, was found guilty of a stalking campaign at a trial at Nottingham Crown Court where it was found that…


Anti-Lockdown Protesters Who Shouted at BBC Journalist Sentenced

A group of anti-lockdown protesters have been sentenced after verbally abusing a BBC journalist during a protest last year. Djazia Chaib-Eddour, 44, Martin Hockridge, 58, Alexander Peat, 34, Christopher Aitken, 62, and Gary Purnell, 45, denied using threatening, abusive, or insulting words or behaviour with intent to cause harassment, alarm, or distress, but were found…


BBC to Publish Internal Investigation Into Hip-Hop DJ Tim Westwood Allegations

The BBC will deliver a report into complaints made about veteran DJ Tim Westwood within the next two weeks, the director-general confirmed on Tuesday. Last Monday, the BBC, where Westwood worked as a presenter for 20 years, said it had received six complaints against him, including one that has been referred to the police. Westwood…