BBC boss: Didn’t Know
by Richard Lutz
This week Channel 4 News doorstepped the former BBC boss Mark Thompson and rattled him by continually asking how much he knew about the appalling Jimmy Savile (sorry… Sir Jimmy Savile) case.
Once again as he batted back searching questions about what he knew and didn’t know about the predatory creep, it became apparent that BBC bosses are simply hiding the truth.
Let me take you back…back to the late 1970’s. I was earning my young chops, carving a career as a reporter for the daily newspaper on Tyneside-The Newcastle Journal.
Savile, in his guise as a charity hero, was to appear at one of the city’s big hospitals. A young woman reporter was tasked to go. She balked.’He’s all over the place.’ she said. Everyone knew what she meant.
He was a predatory weird male and the newsroom storytellers regaled anyone passing about Sir Jimmy’s little drives in his big limo with 15 year old girls.
That anecdote comes from pre-1980. Thirty years ago. It comes from 250 miles north of London’s metro land and the BBC’s HQ..
If the hacks in a northern city all knew tales of Savile’s attacks, how come a highly experienced media boss who came up through the news divisions didn’t know. Or failed to know.
M’lord, I simply put it to the court and let it lie.
Savile you see, unfortunately, won’t go away.
It is not about this dead weirdo anymore. It is about the deceit that BBC bosses (and the national media for that matter) wrapped itself around in order to placate a very powerful public character. I am sure if the clown worked for ITV or Sky, those bosses would have turned a blind eye also to the sordid Savile crimes also.
This week’s street interview with a jittery Thompson shows that bigshot media kings think they are blessed with a certain sort of privilege that puts them above morality, above ethics and above the law.
If intelligent, sophisticated men and women knew about Savile (and believe me, they did), why didn’t they go to the police instead of chucking banknotes at him for his ludicrous shows?
After all, if a bunch of reporters in Tyneside knew about the tv presenter, how could it be an unknown fact in big time tv centres?
Savile won’t go away.
So if the hacks in Tyneside all knew about it why didn’t they follow up on it? Would have been a great story no? Failures everywhere.
So why didn’t the Tyneside reporters expose him, then?
My guess is lack of proof, UK libel law, powerful ‘friends’ and the fear of victims not being believed.A nation fooled by a clown is quite common. Happens all the time.
>’He’s all over the place.’ she said.
Which could simply mean he does loads of charity events. Why not understand it thus?
>”Everyone knew what she meant.”
Really? How about presenting some evidence for this notion? What would there be to stop her instead saying something like “this guy gives me the creeps” or “I don’t want to meet him” or simply “I’ve heard he’s an abuser”? Why instead that 100% innocently-interpretable phrase?
Your whole article here hangs on that “Everyone knew what she meant” and yet you present no evidence in support. Very likely the BBC did indeed cover it up for decades, but you present only an incredibly weak case, or more accurately no case at all.
At least J Savile didn’t kill people. Contrast with a certain highly revered (in some quarters) gentleman from some centuries ago, whose life and times are extensively documented in their full “glory”, who included quite a number of assassinations and cold-blooded massacres among other acts such as pedophilia and theft and multi-bigamy. It’s time more people spoke out about that “hero”, rather than insist on enforcing unworthy respect. Not least in the Birmingham Press.
Hmmm – yes, well – if you put it like that…..