THERE was only one surprising thing about the Martin Bashir Panorama scandal of 2020: which is that anyone was surprised at all. Because we'd heard it all before. Twenty-four years before.
The meat of the story - that Bashir forged bank statements which helped secure his now infamous TV interview with Princess Diana in 1995- had been splashed all over the front page of the Mail on Sunday in April 1996. But back then, no one seemed to care.
That 1996 front page splash by investigative reporters Jason Lewis and Nick Fielding was headlined "DIANA'S BBC MAN AND FAKE BANK STATEMENTS".
And the scoop was - give or take a few relatively minor details - essentially the same as the one which shocked so many in 2020.
This time round, though, the retelling of it ignited a global media scandal which led to the career-ruining (for Bashir and former BBC director-general Tony Hall) Dyson Report about Bashir and the subsequent BBC cover-up.
All of which begs a fascinating question: why was it such a huge scandal this time round, but virtually ignored a quarter of a century ago? The most important factor, I think, is that our attitude to trust changed in those intervening years.
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der October 24, 2023-Ausgabe von Evening Standard.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent ? Anmelden
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der October 24, 2023-Ausgabe von Evening Standard.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent? Anmelden
Only £65k a month to live like Boy George
The Karma Chameleon singer listed his house for £17m in 2022, turning down offers. Now, he's looking for a tenant
Welcome to London, unicorn capital of Europe
We're flying far ahead of anywhere outside US for tech investment
Arteta's Arsenal evolution The next phase
Malik Ouzia and Simon Collings assess how the Spaniard will try to bring down Man City after he signs up for another three years with the title in his sights
Title fight catches fire after Gunners embrace dark side
Arsenal-City clashes take on a welcome edge of animosity
Whack the hippy gong-boho's back
It happened in Paris one grey February day. Sienna Miller was in an oversized, black leather jacket, lace-trimmed silk slip and clumpy great wedges.
There's a Starlink waiting in the sky... 7,000 in fact.Can Elon Musk stop them crashing to Earth?
As he was preparing his fields for seeding this year, Barry Sawchuk came across a giant slab of space debris. It had come from a spacecraft belonging to Elon Musk’s company, SpaceX.
'Politicians are only into power-mongering, corruption and cronyism'
We speak to alt revolutionary DEEPAK CHOPRA about biomarkers, his digital twin and his work to save humanity from disease
I've been waiting for a production of Godotthis brilliant all my life
Ben Whishaw and Lucian Msamati bring a potent, tragicomic chemistry to James Macdonald’s rich revival of Samuel Beckett’s challenging play.
Trust me, the Ritz is London's bestrestaurant
To whom we turn in moments of gloom and glory can be instructive, a filter of our truest friends. I've fallen out with the Ritz a couple of times, including once after a visit to the bar which didn’t warrant a review (“But you said it was lovely!” they said.
'Healing is a dirty word'
After four traumatic years, FKA twigs is back with a new album -and a thrilling metamorphosis
