Row over WMD
The BBC had a bitter row with Prime Minister Tony Blair's government over Iraq's WMD issue. Weapons expert David Kelly, the source of the controversial BBC report, decided to take his own life. The BBC became the fall guy. The much-awaited Lord Hutton inquiry report was also vitriolic about the BBC and gave leeway to Tony Blair. Gavyn Davies, the former chairman of the BBC, resigned. Now we know that Tony Blair's government did "sex up" the document about the Iraqi smoking guns in the run-up to the war, and the BBC report was true.
Much is said about the infringement of freedom of press in the third world countries and Western media watchdogs enjoy the authority of certifying how independent the media of these countries are. Maybe it is high time that they looked in their backyard before commenting on others. It is a shame that Gavyn Davies got virtually sacked for telling the truth in a 'civilised' society, which claims to be the custodian of freedom of press and civil rights.
Now Michael Grade is here to be in the hot seat of the BBC. Unlike his predecessors, he is armed with the experience of public broadcasting.
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