The Sweeney

The ever-gracious John Sweeney, now no longer a BBC reporter, has written to Ofcom to complain about his former employer.

Mr Sweeney lasted a surprising 17 years with the organisation, and, in a letter to the outgoing CEO Sharon White, accuses unnamed editors of being pusillaminous about a range of stories - some of which were never 'commissioned', some of which were 'shelved' and some he had nothing to do with, but heard about. This is clearly very unusual - all reporters are always right, and all their stories should run, however weak they may be.

He claims investigations into Labour’s Lord Mandelson, the former Tory cabinet minister John Whittingdale, the Brexit funder Arron Banks, the oligarch Roman Abramovich and the far-right activist Tommy Robinson were all dropped. He claims that a potential report into “the pro-Russian sympathies of Labour spin doctor Seumas Milne” was NEVER EVEN COMMISSIONED. How very dare they ?

“BBC management, led by director-general Tony Hall, has become so risk-averse in the face of threats from the far-right and the Russian state and its proxies that due impartiality is being undermined and investigative journalism is being endangered.”

The BBC countered: “The BBC demands high standards from its journalists and expects them to behave with the necessary professionalism. As John knows, failing to do so compromises investigative journalism.

“Furthermore, investigative journalism can take years. The fact something has not yet been broadcast does not mean an investigation has finished.”