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BBC staff ‘acted appropriately’ in Cliff Richard coverage, says director general

Tony Hall backs journalists after accusations of ‘witch-hunt’ from MPs and others over live broadcast of raid on star’s home
  
  

Cliff Richard
Cliff Richard: the BBC has been accused of a ‘witch-hunt’ in its coverage of the police raid on the star’s home. Photograph: Dominic Lipinski/PA Photograph: Dominic Lipinski/PA

The BBC director general has said BBC journalists “acted appropriately” in their coverage of the police raid on Sir Cliff Richard’s flat following sexual assault allegations.

Hall, defending BBC News as he commented on the controversy over its coverage for the first time since the raid a week ago, also said the corporation would not be revealing the source of the story.

Hall was responding to a letter sent by Commons home affairs select committee chairman Keith Vaz earlier this week, in which the Labour MP pressed Hall to explain how the broadcaster first learned about the planned police search and who authorised a news helicopter to film the raid.

The BBC director general and David Crompton, the South Yorkshire chief constable, were told on Monday to be ready to give evidence to MPs over the force’s handling of the inquiry into historical child abuse allegations.

In his letter to Vaz, Hall said: “I believe that BBC journalists have acted appropriately in pursuing this story. As you rightly say, the media has a right to report on matters of public interest.

“Sir Cliff Richard is one of the most successful British entertainers of all time and has been a prominent public figure for several decades. Investigations into historic sex abuse cases have – and will continue to have – a profound impact on the lives of well-known individuals and the standing of public institutions.

“The disclosure of a sex abuse allegation against Sir Cliff Richard and the police search of his property was clearly a significant story and the BBC was not alone in providing extensive coverage.”

The raid on the pop star’s penthouse caused controversy when the corporation broke news of the search and broadcast coverage of police entering Richard’s £3.5m Berkshire residence from a helicopter flying above.

It prompted accusations of a “witch-hunt” by the BBC and comparisons with the worst tabloid excesses, with questions also asked about South Yorkshire police’s decision to collaborate with the corporation on coverage of the raid.

Hall added: “The protection of sources is a key principle for all journalism – from broadcasters to newspapers – and for that reason the BBC will not be providing details about the source. This makes it difficult to answer some of your questions specifically; however, following speculation about this story, we did confirm that South Yorkshire Police were not our original source regarding the investigation into Sir Cliff Richard.”

Richard has vehemently denied any wrongdoing over an allegation of sexual abuse on a boy under 16 at a Christian rally in Sheffield in 1985.

The corporation’s coverage of the raid prompted criticism from politicians and public figures, including former BBC broadcaster Michael Parkinson, and its legality was questioned by human rights lawyer, Geoffrey Robertson.

James Harding, the former Times editor who is the BBC’s director of news and current affairs, was on holiday last week. Harding’s deputy, Fran Unsworth, and members of the BBC’s legal department contacted news teams to give the reports about the star the all-clear 10 minutes before its coverage broke across TV, radio and online at 1pm last Thursday.

Insiders have said the BBC’s coverage reflected a drive by senior management to break more stories after BBC News found itself outgunned by ITV News, with its award-winning coverage of the Woolwich attack, and Channel 4 News, which won acclaim for its Plebgate scoop.

Harding has made clear since taking charge of BBC News that it should be breaking more stories, setting the pace and “driving the daily agenda”.

BBC insiders said there was pressure on the corporation’s domestic newsgathering to up its game, while its foreign operations were generally regarded as doing a good job.

There was praise for BBC reporter Dan Johnson, who covers the north-east and Cumbria, who got the scoop, but also reservations among some that the live helicopter footage had been over the top.

“I don’t think anyone seriously thinks, having got the story, that we should’ve sat on it,” a senior BBC source said. “We are a journalistic organisation, after all.”

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