Biography

The first Chief Executive of Channel Four (1982 - 1987).

He was made a Fellow of the British Film Institute in recognition of his outstanding contribution to television culture.

Preying on concerns over immigration and jobs, the BNP responds to fears the bigger parties may ignore. Someone has to. The BNP is entitled to a minimal share of public air-time. Those who vote for them deserve to be heard. The journalist's responsibility is to present their views in context and, with proper rigour, to examine what they say and challenge their assumptions. It is easier to do that on Today or Newsnight (1980) than on lightweight programmes aiming to be user-friendly and accessible, especially to younger audiences.

We live in an electoral democracy. The BBC has a duty to present a full range of political opinion; not every lone nutter or crackpot of course, but any grouping that visibly represents a segment of the population.

In the 1960s, the BBC's Director General, Hugh Greene, insisted on impartiality and the stringency needed to achieve it. But he said that, on race, the BBC could not be neutral; we were against racism. At Smethwick, in the 1966 election, senior BBC editors were not sure whether to report nationally on the views expressed there. The liberal consensus found reasons not to give racist resentments a hearing. They festered as a result.

The best response to extremist views is to fight them in the open, carry the argument to those who hold them, and let the public judge. That entails a properly conducted discussion. No BNP interviews, please, with Jonathan Ross. But Question Time (1979), with David Dimbleby in charge, should, even allowing for the volatile studio audience, shed more light than heat.