Being the whining anal pedant that I am, I left a comment at the BBC's Newswatch website moaning about my thoughts on reporting viewers' comments as fact. Newswatch was set up after the Hutton inquiry as a way for the BBC to be much more touchy feely with its viewers and listeners and deal with any complaints they have over news coverage. Think of it as Points of View but with the why-oh-why dial turned down a few notches.
Anyway, here's the reply in full:
Andrew,
Thanks for your comments. I have to say I did hear the explosion and I live in south London. I was awake at the time and thought my boiler was packing up!
But you're right that all comments from readers and viewers should be treated as just that and not taken as a reliable source. Interestingly, in the wake of the shooting at Stockwell tube station, the BBC defended
its extensive use of eyewitness accounts to tell the story. Now, as more evidence gradually seeps out, many of them appear to have been wrong.
A sensible warning, and one all broadcasters would do well to take note of.
Best wishes,
Ian Jolly*
NewsWatch
I thought this was quite a reasoned reply to be honest, although I would still argue that it probably was his boiler but several people in South London have told me in a got-your-eye-wiped kind of way that they heard it to. I'm obviously just a much heavier sleeper than I thought, I'd have been fucked in the Blitz.
*It's admirable that, post-Hutton, the BBC is hiring people whose name corresponds with their demeanour. If Andrew Gilligan's real name had been Andrew Killagain they might have avoided a lot of jip.
