The unfolding scandal about sexual abuse at the BBC can be viewed as yet another blow to the image of the media. The network’s suppression of a story about a longtime show host’s alleged crimes ought to put a fork in the myth of the Beeb being the gold standard for impartiality and integrity. The fact that the BBC killed a story on its “Newsnight” broadcast while at the same time running tributes to the late Jimmy Saville, the man accused of molesting and raping several teenagers will haunt it for a long time to come.
But as much as this story tells us about the BBC, this latest tale of sexual misconduct is not dissimilar from other abuse scandals. Like the pedophilia outrages that rocked the Catholic Church and the Penn State University football team, there is a familiar pattern at work here. Powerful individuals used their positions to exploit young people in their charge while institutions looked the other way and then did what they could to ensure that no one found out. Investigators will, no doubt, discover what officials at the BBC knew about Saville and when they knew it. It is also to be hoped that the “journalistic decision” to spike the story about the investigation will also be fully explored. However, this episode ought to remind us that such crimes are not solely the province of Catholic priests or football coaches but can also be discovered at those institutions run by the supposedly enlightened classes.
Each set of circumstances may be different. But all these cases boil down to predators using their status and authority to rape and molest and institutions that valued their image more than the lives of children. These are odious crimes, but they are not the sole province of any particular group or class. They can be found anywhere. Those who think otherwise are not only deluded. They are enabling those who use the cover of seemingly respected professions to commit similar offenses.
I tend to agree, but at the "conservative" Commentary pathetic Jewish liberalism dies hard.
I'd give this more credence if the author acknowledged a number of recent cases among Haredim, and the condemnation of those who report such things as "mosers."
There is a strong argument here to end taxpayer support for CPB, PBS, and NPR; but this story reveals how much more important it is to abolish taxpayer support for the BBC and open up the public discourse in England to a real discussion. This should be a no-brainer, especially as the Exchequer very much needs to rein in public spending as well.
The Catholic churhc is BY FAR the worst. In the US alone, the Catholic church admitted 4,392 substantiated, accused Catholic priests, but it gets worse. Every one of those pedophiles confessed to another priest, and all of these misfits conspired to hide all of the other misfits and they all fight the victims to this day.
The BBC bent its journalistic ethics disgraceful during the run up to the Iraq war. That produced judicial inquiries and stinging rebukes. The BEEB should have lost or been restricted in its license back then. But in this sex matter it is NOT comparably culpable or censurable as was the Church or Penn State. n nBoth of those institutions were entrusted with youth, for their moral and ethical improvement. Instead those positions were misused to do the exact opposite, to corrupt the youth. n nFor a journalist however, to use his fame to seduce young men is not a comparable matter. His depravity does not reflect on his employer in the same way that priests and educators tarnish the Church and their school. It is unfair and opportunistic to suggest a parallel, when the motivation is political distaste for the BBC,
I have a great interest in the blattes of WW1, particularly the Battle of the Somme. Each year for the past 15 years I have visited for the 1st July commemoration events starting with the service at Lochnagar. Great to read of the La Boisselle project. This year I shall visit the immediate site following the parade from Lochnagar. I wish you well and will look forward to reading of your progress