Panorama:
A Fight to the Death - a statement from Peter Horrocks, BBC Head
of Current Affairs
The
BBC has released the following statement from Peter Horrocks, Head
of Current Affairs, about the Panorama Special A Fight to the Death.
The
programme will be shown on BBC ONE at 8.30pm on Wednesday 21 January
2004.
"Wednesday's
Panorama Special on the David Kelly affair, A Fight to the Death,
has been made over the past six months in an entirely independent
and objective manner.
"No
senior BBC executive who was involved in the handling of the Andrew
Gilligan story or who was called before the Hutton inquiry has seen
the programme in advance. That includes Greg Dyke and Richard Sambrook.
"Senior
levels of the BBC have given the programme makers complete independence
of operation, to examine both the BBC's and the Government's conduct.
"We
have made an even-handed and objective account of this significant
story. It
is right that Panorama has the right to cover such an important
story.
"We
hope that this programme, and other Hutton coverage from BBC News,
can demonstrate to the public the BBC's ability to be impartial,
even in covering its own affairs.
"This
is therefore Panorama's own independent journalism, rather than
the BBC's corporate position, which will be communicated when the
Hutton inquiry reports.
"Weekend
newspaper coverage claimed that there had been divisions within
BBC News over the making of this Panorama. Nothing could be further
from the truth.
"BBC
News has been entirely supportive of the programme makers' independence
and there is no disagreement between different parts of News on
this issue."
Peter
Horrocks
Notes
to Editors
Panorama
website
BBC
statement on interview footage of Dr David Kelly included in Panorama:
A Fight To The Death (21.01.04)
Panorama:
A Fight to the Death - guide transcript (21.01.04)
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