In his fateful interview with John Humphrys on Saturday morning’s Today programme, the now former BBC director-general George Entwistle was asked if he’d seen the Guardian the previous day, in which doubt had been cast on Newsnight’s paedophile story. Entwistle said he hadn’t because he was preparing for a speech that morning.
“Are some things rather more important than others?” asked Humphrys. “I mean, do you not have to have a different set of priorities?”
And what was this important speech at 11.45am on Friday morning that prevented him from reading the morning papers?
The speech was to the Public Broadcasters International Conference: “As public service broadcasters, we must recognise it falls to every one of us to lift our eyes from the pressing issues of the day, whenever we can, and recognise the responsibility and opportunities we have to make a positive impact on the broader discourse of trust in public institutions,” said Entwistle.
Or to paraphrase, why see the wood when you can see the trees?
