BBC journalism neutered by Oryx libel case?
halcombe
that the mere threat of a writ makes them squeal.
They're not the first to find something not quite right in the
governance of Antigua, evidently.
And what weight of evidence does the gentleman who runs the place
bring to bear?
"He denounced the accusations as false, and Sir Ronald Sanders,
Antigua's high commissioner to Britain, yesterday said that a report
by a commission of inquiry, published last week, did not substantiate
the BBC allegations."
Who set up such an inquiry?
"Sir Ronald said the inquiry was set up by the governor-general on the
advice of Mr Bird, after he accepted there were serious problems with
the fund."
So that's all right, then.
Although, perhaps one is a mite curious as to who sat on the inquiry,
and - oh, off the top of the head - what relationship they might have
had with the gentleman in question.
The remnants of BBC journalism had, and, I suspect, still have, one or
two questions on the matter, too.
But, thanks to the buffoons who 'investigated' Oryx, they're waiting
for the last tube on the Line of Least Resistance.
There's still time for the BBC suits to show some backbone, of course.
Doubt if anyone's making a book on it, though...
[1] http://groups.google.com/groups?selm=d7fa3848.0207181244.2ed6e11a%40posting.google.com
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http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,3604,772139,00.html
New libel row puts pressure on BBC
Kevin Maguire
Saturday August 10, 2002
The Guardian
The BBC may be forced to broadcast a "positive" story on a
controversial Commonwealth leader it accused of misusing more than
£50m of the country's health funds to pay for lavish parties and
holidays.
Senior executives are understood to have discussed showing a different
side of Lester Bird, prime Minster of Antigua and Barbuda, after he
claimed he had been defamed by Radio 4's Today programme.
Mr Bird has instructed a firm of London solicitors to sue the BBC
after the news programme predicted an official inquiry would be highly
critical of his behaviour.
He denounced the accusations as false, and Sir Ronald Sanders,
Antigua's high commissioner to Britain, yesterday said that a report
by a commission of inquiry, published last week, did not substantiate
the BBC allegations.
Sir Ronald said: "The inquiry has now published its report, and it
certainly does not in any way, shape, or form mention that Lester Bird
spent any money on anything. It has no findings against... Lester
Bird."
The threat of another high-profile libel case is embarrassing for a
BBC already locked in an expensive battle with Oryx, a mining
corporation seeking upwards of £6m compensation after it was wrongly
accused of being a front for Osama bin Laden's terrorist network.
The possibility of a second Antigua piece, putting Mr Bird's side of
the story, has been privately discussed by BBC executives as an
alternative to a straight correction if the corporation decides to
settle the action rather than pay compensation or see Mr Bird in
court. A BBC source confirmed that the corporation was discussing its
options - as it would in the face of any libel threat - but declined
to elaborate.
The possibility of running a favourable story to satisfy Mr Bird has
concerned some BBC journalists who, if it was required to apologise
rather than fight the case in court, would prefer a traditional
apology.
The Bird family has dominated Antiguan politics for four decades. Mr
Bird became prime minister in 1994, succeeding his father Vere Bird,
who was the country's first PM in 1981 after independence from
Britain.
Other members of the family have been hit by a succession of scandals,
including allegations of involvement in gun-running, and Mr Bird's
brother, Ivor, was convicted of cocaine smuggling in 1995.
In the past the US state department has also been critical of
"inadequate supervision" of a burgeoning offshore banking industry,
the customs complaining it was used to launder drugs money.
The Bird item that triggered the libel action was broadcast on Today
on July 5 and versions appeared on the World Service, the
international TV news channel BBC World, and on the BBC internet site.
Mr Bird and the country's elite were said to have misused money from
Antigua's medical benefits scheme over 20 years to finance parties and
holidays for the PM's friends and colleagues.
Sir Ronald said the inquiry was set up by the governor-general on the
advice of Mr Bird, after he accepted there were serious problems with
the fund.
He said that Mr Bird was in Guyana for a Caribbean conference when the
allegations were broadcast, and the impact had been "quite
devastating". He wanted an apology rather than compensation.
The diplomat added: "He's more interested in the apology, for them to
say it's not true because it's not true. This is not greed, it's not
avarice promoting this. It's simply to have his name cleared."
Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2002