BBC apologises to Bashir whistleblower Matt Wiessler

The graphic designer raised the alarm about the journalist’s use of fake bank statements.
FILE PHOTO: 'Nightline' anchor Bashir takes part in a panel discussion at the ABC television network Summer press tour for television critics in Beverly Hills
Martin Bashir
REUTERS
Laura Harding3 June 2021

The whistleblower who tried to expose Martin Bashir’s methods for landing his exclusive Panorama interview with Diana Princess has received a personal apology from the director-general of the BBC.

Graphic designer Matt Wiessler was sidelined by the corporation after raising concerns that fake bank statements he mocked up for Mr Bashir had been used by the journalist to persuade Diana to do the interview.

Speaking after a meeting at the BBC where he received a personal apology from current director-general Tim Davie he was asked why the apology was important to him.

Princess Diana – Panorama interview
PA Archive

He told BBC News: “Because I still felt that to this day that the BBC were just saying things to sort of appease me.

“But I have come away from it feeling (that they) really, really support me and they want to clear up the past and start again on a sort of friendly relationship.”

Asked about the prospect of being paid compensation, he said: “There might well be but I’m not involved in that and Tim and I have spoken about that quite openly, it’s sort of confidential but we very much both just want to move on.”

A recent invesigation by Lord Dyson into the interview criticised the methods Mr Bashir used to secure his bombshell 1995 Panorama interview.

The report also suggested the BBC had failed to uphold “governance, accountability and scrutiny”.

A BBC spokeswoman said of the meeting: “It was both constructive and positive, but as you’d expect, we are not going to get into the specifics of a private meeting.”

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