Princess Diana Scandal Is a Genuine Crisis for the BBC
If this were only a story about one rogue reporter, the BBC would still be hanging its collective head in shame. But it's worse than that.
“Scoop of the century”
Photographer: Tim Graham/Corbis HistoricalIt was the most explosive television interview in the history of the British monarchy and the BBC. In 1995 Princess Diana revealed to millions of viewers around the world that there were “three people” in her marriage to Prince Charles — the third party being the heir to the throne’s mistress, and now wife, Camilla Parker Bowles. Diana’s divorce, departure from the Royal Family and untimely death followed.
But how did the inexperienced BBC reporter Martin Bashir get his scoop of a lifetime? A devastating report published this week by John Dyson, a former judge, found that the journalist secured his interview on the “Panorama” news program by way of forgery. He faked the documents that persuaded Diana’s brother Charles Spencer to introduce him to his sister, and he allegedly lied to Diana to fuel her paranoia about the Royal Family and the British establishment, and so get her to dish the dirt.