The BBC is reportedly set to pay $2 million to a charity of the British royal family’s choosing in an effort to make amends for the scandal surrounding Martin Bashir’s1995 interviewwithPrincess Diana.
The proposed donation includes $1.5 million (£1.15 million), the amount the network made from selling the global rights to the interview, plus reparations, according to theMail on Sunday.
Sources told the outlet that Diana’s two sons,Prince WilliamandPrince Harry, will likely be part of the decision of where the money should go.
Rosa Monckton, a close friend of Princess Diana, told theMail on Sunday: ‘This is an admirable decision, though obviously it cannot undo the damage that has been done or erase the BBC’s guilt."
In the interview, Princess Diana famously said there were “three of us in this marriage, so it was a bit crowded.” She was divorced fromPrince Charlesthe following year and tragically died following a car crash in Paris in 1997.
Martin Bashir.Mark Allan/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty
In astatement on the BBC, Bashir apologized for faking the documents but said he remained “immensely proud” of the interview. Bashirquit his postas BBC religion editor ahead of the network’s release of the inquiry report.
Princess Diana during her Panorama interview.PA Images
Speaking exclusively to PEOPLEin November 2020, Princess Diana’s brother Charles, Earl Spencer stated that Bashir’s documents played a hugely influential role in his decision to approach Diana about the interview, as they alleged that a member of his staff was being paid to leak information about the princess’s family.
“This was what led me to talk to Diana about such things,” he told PEOPLE at the time. “This, in turn, led to the meeting where I introduced Diana to Bashir, on September 19, 1995. This then led to the interview.”
Charles Spencer and Princess Diana.Amanda Edwards/WireImage; Tim Graham Photo Library/Getty
In a statement,Prince William, 39, strongly criticized the “deceitful way the interview was obtained” and defended his mother.
“I would like to thank Lord Dyson and his team for the report,” the Duke of Cambridge said. “It is welcome that the BBC accepts Lord Dyson’s findings in full — which are extremely concerning — that BBC employees: lied and used fake documents to obtain the interview with my mother; made lurid and false claims about the Royal Family which played on her fears and fuelled paranoia; displayed woeful incompetence when investigating complaints and concerns about the programme; and were evasive in their reporting to the media and covered up what they knew from their internal investigation.”
William continued, “It is my view that the deceitful way the interview was obtained substantially influenced what my mother said. The interview was a major contribution to making my parents’ relationship worse and has since hurt countless others.”
Prince Harry, 36, also released a powerful statement in response to the inquiry, saying, “Our mother was an incredible woman who dedicated her life to service. She was resilient, brave, and unquestionably honest. The ripple effect of a culture of exploitation and unethical practices ultimately took her life.
“To those who have taken some form of accountability, thank you for owning it. That is the first step towards justice and truth. Yet what deeply concerns me is that practices like these — and even worse — are still widespread today. Then, and now, it’s bigger than one outlet, one network, or one publication.
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“Our mother lost her life because of this, and nothing has changed. By protecting her legacy, we protect everyone, and uphold the dignity with which she lived her life. Let’s remember who she was and what she stood for.”
source: people.com
