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Ryder's Ariel piece (Read 2275 times)
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Ryder's Ariel piece
Feb 3rd, 2004, 4:13pm
 
The Acting Chairman, Lord Ryder, puts his name to this piece in Ariel, dated Februar 3rd.  Among other things, he sets out the timetable and process for appointing a substantive Director General:

The departures of Gavyn Davies and Greg Dyke are sad losses for all of us at the BBC.

Gavyn is an outstanding public servant with supreme integrity and a deep affection for the institution. Greg is an inspirational leader, and his charisma reached every corner of the BBC.

It was necessary for Greg and me to apologise for the BBC's errors highlighted in the Hutton Report. Most of our mistakes were, of course, conceded during the Inquiry itself.

Gavyn accepted ultimate responsibility by resigning. Greg also offered his resignation to the Governors and we accepted it.

As Greg said himself in his e-mail to BBC staff last Thursday, "I've sadly come to the conclusion that it will be hard to draw a line under this whole affair while I am still here. We need closure."

Now we must all set our eyes on the future in the public interest. We owe this duty to the BBC's audiences.

We are all grateful to Mark Byford for taking on the role of Acting DG. He has the total support of the Governors and the Executive.

Mark has worked for the BBC for 24 years. He is steeped in public service values and commands wide respect inside and outside the organisation. He has shown formidable skills as head of the World Service and is a strong, proven leader.

Mark has stressed that his role is to provide collective leadership with the Executive to ensure that the BBC emerges from this difficult time a strong, independent and vibrant organisation, building on Greg and Gavyn's legacy.

Mark will undertake a review of the lessons the BBC must learn from the last few months, including how we investigate and correct editorial mistakes.

Impartiality, accuracy and trust have always been core BBC values designed to serve the public.

Brave, independent and rigorous journalism will be maintained under Mark's leadership. This includes investigative reporting set within a robust editorial framework.

The Board will never interfere with this work. Nor shall I allow any external body to interfere with the BBC's crucial independence.

The BBC is experiencing a busier time than ever. Over the next few months we face the Graf review of our Online services, the Ofcom review of public service television, the DCMS review of our digital services and of course the Charter Review process.

Our major document on Charter Review was due to be published in March. We have agreed to postpone publication until a new Chairman and permanent Director-General can take personal ownership of it.

The DCMS have assured me that the vacant Chairmanship will be filled by the middle of April. I am not a candidate, and intend to keep the Department to this timetable. The advertisement for the job will appear in Sunday's newspapers.

Meanwhile the Governors, solely responsible for the appointment of the Director-General, will invite applications. A short list will be drawn up, and a final choice made from this list soon after the new Chairman assumes office.

I have always believed that the BBC's prime purpose is to enrich people's lives with programmes and services which inform, educate and entertain.

We do this in the Nations and Regions of the United Kingdom as well as throughout the world.

It was good to see the BBC's creative vitality recognised last week with two Golden Globes for The Office.

I am sure we will all agree that the Making it Happen initiative must remain central to the BBC.

Greg's passionate advocacy of leadership, creativity and audiences was backed by his Executive colleagues and the Governors and the staff. We all remain fully committed to this imperative cause.

Recent turbulence has been borne with true professionalism by the 29,000 people working for the BBC.

I want to express my deep appreciation for your devotion to a great institution which exists to serve the public.

In particular, I want to thank all our journalists for upholding the highest standards of objectivity when covering the outcome of the Hutton report.

No other news operation in the world could have achieved such balance in reporting itself in the eye of a public storm.

I share the vision of everyone at the BBC for an independent organisation that serves the public above all else.

I believe that the vast majority of the British people are proud of the values and traditions of the BBC. It is their BBC. And let no one forget, it belongs only to them.
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