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BBC pervert enjoyed culture of ‘reverence’
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AN inquiry into sexual abuse at the BBC by late British presenter Jimmy Savile published yesterday said a culture of “reverence” for celebrities had helped him rape and molest victims unhindered for decades.
The report found Savile had abused 72 victims — both male and female and nearly half aged under 16 — in studios, dressing rooms, lifts and canteens between the late 1960s and the late 1980s.
His youngest victim was aged just 8.
Savile was one of Britain’s top celebrities from the 1960s until his death aged 84 in 2011, famous for his shock of white hair, outlandish clothes and charity fundraising activities.
He used his position as host of some of the BBC’s most popular programmes, including music chart show “Top Of The Pops,” to meet young fans and subsequently abuse them.
Abuse allegations against him only became public after his death, prompting police to launch Operation Yewtree, an investigation into Savile and a string of other celebrities from a similar era.
This led to the conviction and imprisonment of five celebrities including children’s TV presenter Rolf Harris and 1970s glam rocker Gary Glitter.
Janet Smith, author of the 793-page report into the BBC and Savile, which has taken over three years to complete, said the presenter had been “opportunistic and shameless” and that his “preferred target” was teenage girls.
She said some members of BBC staff were “aware” of Savile’s abuse but did not report it due to an “atmosphere of fear” about whistleblowing that persists to this day.
“There was a feeling of reverence for them and a fear that, if a star were crossed, he or she might leave the BBC,” Smith said.
BBC director-general Tony Hall said he accepted the report’s conclusions and would launch an independent audit of the organisation’s whistleblowing and child protection policies.
“We are listening and we understand,” he said, adding that the BBC had been “too hierarchical” and “too self-absorbed.”
“We are all committed to creating an open BBC where everyone has the confidence to raise issues.”
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