BBC: déjà vu?
In the words of His Royal Highness Prince William, speaking to camera in May 2020, “BBC employees lied and... made lurid and false claims... which played on... fears and fuelled paranoia (and) displayed woeful incompetence when investigating complaints and concerns.”
Prince William went on to state, “They were evasive in their reporting to the media and covered up what they knew.... It is my view that the deceitful way [this was done] substantially influenced what [was] said. [It] has since hurt countless others. It brings indescribable sadness to know the BBC’s failures contributed significantly to... fear, paranoia and isolation... But what saddens me most is that if the BBC had properly investigated the complaints and concerns first raised [that year]... [we] would have known that [we] had been deceived. [We were] failed not just by a rogue reporter, but by leaders of the BBC who looked the other way rather than asking the tough questions. It is my firm view that this Panorama programme holds no legitimacy and should never be aired again. It effectively established a false narrative, which for over a quarter of a century has been commercialised by the BBC and others. This settled narrative now needs to be addressed by the BBC and anyone else who has written or intends to write about these events. In an era of fake news, public service broadcasting and a free press have never been more important. These failings, identified by investigative journalists, not only let... my family down; they let the public down, too.” (Emphasis mine, and certain singular pronouns pluralised out of context for effect).
He was, of course, speaking of the Lord Dyson report, which found that the BBC had lied, covered up its lies, and conspired to keep those lies covered up, with respect to Martin Bashir’s 1995 interview with Princess Diana for Panorama. You can watch Prince Williams’s emotional speech, which was reported by almost every mainstream media channel worldwide, here.
While the speech was in direct response to the cruel and unjust way in which Princess Diana was treated, William could just as easily have been speaking of the despicable way in which the BBC turned a blind eye to Jimmy Savile’s unbroken reign as Director General of Paedophilia. When speaking about those who were damaged by the BBC’s actions, he could have been referring to all those victims of Savile’s, who were bullied by police, disbelieved and shunned. We now know that the BBC enabled Savile’s abuse; it is all described in lurid detail in Dame Janet Smith’s report published in February 2016.
But what should chill us all to the bone is the very real possibility that, at some point down the line, our future monarch could be saying these words about the current crisis... calling the Covid pandemic a complete scam and the Covid vaccines a deadly mistake. The Panorama programme he would then be able to refer to, without changing his speech much, will be Marianna Spring’s investigation into so-called “anti-vaxxers” - a vile, discriminatory slur cast at anyone who has the intelligence and wherewithal to ask a few questions about a novel biotechnology, and take it upon themselves to alert the public if they discover inaccurate information is being peddled by the authorities. Anti vaxxers are definitely telling lies, we’ve been told; just as Jimmy Savile’s victims definitely told lies. See how it goes?
A free mainstream press is our best means of speaking truth to power and holding authorities to account. When the “free” press takes money from anyone other than those who pay for it (the taxpayer), it is no longer “free”. And let us not forget that we also pay to employ Her Majesty’s Government – no doubt soon to become His Majesty’s Government. This Guardian editorial had some sage advice for the young Prince William on his 18th birthday in June 2000. Suggesting that, “an actuary would give Charles favourable odds of making it to 85 at least”, the editor made some recommendations as to what William might do with his life during the intervening years until he comes to the throne; “...always assuming that the monarchical system still finds favour in this country in 2035, which is another interesting actuarial challenge,” he added.
If William does hope to keep favour with the British public, he might start by not taking political or ideological sides. He might start by listening to the growing number of disquieted but silenced voices calling for an investigation into the Covid story, because their number is growing every single day. If they could reach him, they would probably say, “William, we, the people, want to ask some serious questions. Who does the BBC protect? Who does the BBC answer to? They lied about your mother and your family; they lied about Jimmy Savile. Why on earth should we assume they are telling the truth about the 'pandemic', or the offered vaccines? Where is the other side of the story? Why is there only one narrative (again) and no counter argument?”
Should we wait 20 years for yet another shocking report on BBC lies and cover-ups? Or should we ask “the tough questions” – as His Highness puts it – now? Let’s start with this question: why are OfCom-regulated broadcasters not “allowed” to give airtime to those who question the narrative around covid, lockdowns or vaccines? If there was a dangerous entity pushing a tyrannical agenda, how would we know? And since most of the independent news platforms that are not regulated/influenced by OfCom or Big Tech are reaching a consensus that suggests we are being controlled by a tyrannical agenda, isn’t it time we talked about it openly? I recently put the following question to a journalist I know who works in mainstream broadcast media and was refusing to acknowledge the seriousness of censorship: “Throughout the whole of history, give me one example of a time when decent, respectable leaders censored the press. And, while you are at it, make me a list of all the times when oppressors did.” The good guys don’t censor; the bad guys do. See how it goes?
There are now so many elephants in the room you can barely get into the room. And they increase in number and size every day. They’re not going anywhere. Remember: elephants never forget. So let’s deal with them before they breach the walls and the room is smashed to pieces.
The BBC is not, inherently, a bad idea. A monarchy is not, inherently, a bad idea. But they must work for the people they serve and represent, or there is no point to them. And they must “find favour” with the people, or they will become hated, and nothing good has ever come out of a nation feeling at odds with its established institutions. We have been lied to. Public trust in our institutions is broken. The country has been divided as never before. Someone needs to step up, urgently, and consult with representatives of every faction in our society, not just those deemed popular on social media. We need a truth and reconciliation commission. We cannot wait 25 years for a solemn speech by (then) King William condemning every institution for their lies.
If you are a BBC employee, and you have any doubts about the one-sided narrative that is being peddled about covid and about covid vaccines, it is your moral, national and professional duty to stand up and speak out now. At the very least, join the Lockdowns Summit this Saturday, suspend your unconscious bias, and pay close attention: https://www.questioneverything.io/
Please use the following letter to write to your MP if you are concerned about the freedom of the press:
https://timeforrecovery.org/ofcom-mp-letter/
Postscript: Last night MPs voted to make it mandatory for care workers to be vaccinated to keep their jobs. Many of these care staff are low-paid and care for MPs' own elderly parents. Now these vital workers may lose their jobs if they fail to get jabbed. The BBC did not cover the Commons vote in their 10 O'Clock news programme last night and, at time of writing, there was no prominent coverage on the BBC website.
https://twitter.com/talkRADIO/status/1415249151017771009?s=20