Martin Bashir facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Martin Bashir
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Bashir in 2007
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| Born | 19 January 1963 London, England
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| Education | King Alfred's College of Higher Education King's College London |
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| Years active | 1986–2021 |
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Notable credit(s)
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| Spouse(s) | Deborah Bashir |
| Children | 3 |
| Musical career | |
| Genres | Reggae |
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Martin Henry Bashir (born 19 January 1963) is a British former journalist. He was a TV presenter in both Britain and America. He worked for the BBC's Panorama show. In 1995, he got a famous interview with Diana, Princess of Wales. Later, it was found that he used dishonest methods to get this interview.
Bashir worked for the BBC from 1986 to 1999. He then joined ITV. In 2003, he made a documentary about Michael Jackson. From 2004 to 2016, he worked in New York. He was an anchor for ABC's Nightline. He also worked as a political commentator for MSNBC. He had his own show there called Martin Bashir. He also worked for NBC's Dateline NBC. In 2016, he returned to the BBC. He became their religious affairs correspondent.
In 2020, the BBC apologized for how Bashir got the 1995 interview with Princess Diana. An independent investigation found that Bashir used fake documents. He used them to trick Diana's brother, Earl Spencer. This helped him get access to Diana. Bashir resigned from the BBC in May 2021 due to health reasons.
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Growing Up and Learning
Martin Bashir was born in Wandsworth, London. He grew up there with his family. His parents were liberal Muslims from Pakistan. When he was a teenager, he became a Christian. His father served in the Royal Navy during World War II.
Bashir went to Wandsworth School. He then studied English and History at King Alfred's College of Higher Education. Later, he earned a master's degree in theology from King's College London.
He was one of five children. One of his brothers had muscular dystrophy and passed away in 1991. Bashir has said that his brother's memory influenced his life choices. This included his appearance on The X Factor: Celebrity.
Bashir's Career in TV
Starting at BBC and ITV
Before joining the BBC in 1986, Bashir was a freelance sports journalist. He worked for the BBC until 1999. He worked on shows like Songs of Praise and Panorama. For Panorama, he interviewed Diana, Princess of Wales in 1995. This interview became very famous.
In 1999, he moved to ITV. There, he worked on special documentaries. He also did features for Tonight with Trevor McDonald.
Working in America
In 2004, Bashir moved to New York. He started working for ABC. He was a co-anchor for their news show Nightline. He took over the show in 2005 with Cynthia McFadden and Terry Moran.
In 2008, Bashir was suspended from ABC News. This happened after he made some inappropriate comments during a speech. He later wrote an apology. He said his remark was "tasteless" and that he "bitterly regret[ted]" it.
In August 2010, Bashir left ABC and joined MSNBC. He became a political commentator there. He also hosted his own show, Martin Bashir. He was also a correspondent for NBC's Dateline NBC.
In 2013, Bashir faced criticism for showing an edited video clip. The clip was of Neil Heslin, whose son died in the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. Bashir's edited video made it seem like a "heckler" interrupted Heslin. MSNBC later showed the full, unedited video.
In November 2013, Bashir criticized Sarah Palin. He made comments that were seen as very harsh. He apologized a few days later. He said his words were "unacceptable" and "unworthy." He was suspended by MSNBC and resigned shortly after.
Returning to the BBC
In late 2016, Bashir went back to BBC News. He became their religious affairs correspondent. He left the BBC on May 14, 2021. This was due to health issues. It happened just before a report was released about his 1995 interview with Diana, Princess of Wales.
Famous Interviews
The Princess Diana Interview
In November 1995, Bashir interviewed Diana, Princess of Wales. They talked about her marriage to the Prince of Wales. The interview was for the BBC's Panorama show. Nearly 23 million people in the UK watched it. It was a huge event and made Bashir famous worldwide.
However, five months later, reporters claimed Bashir used fake documents. They said he used them to trick Diana's family. A BBC graphic designer, Matt Wiessler, said he created the fake bank statements for Bashir. Wiessler believed Bashir used these to gain the trust of Diana's brother, Earl Spencer. This helped Bashir meet Diana.
The BBC investigated this in 1996. They said Bashir did nothing wrong. They claimed the fake documents were not used to get the interview. However, internal BBC papers later showed that the BBC knew about the fake documents. The BBC's director-general at the time, Tony Hall, said Bashir was "an honest man." But Wiessler's contract with the BBC was cancelled.
25 years later, a TV show looked into the case again. Wiessler said he was made a scapegoat. This led to a new independent inquiry. Tim Davie, the current BBC director-general, apologized to Earl Spencer. Spencer said the BBC had "covered it up." He said Bashir gave Diana false information to gain her trust.
In May 2021, the inquiry's report was released. It found that Bashir used "deceitful methods" to get the interview. The report called Bashir "unreliable" and "dishonest." After this, Bashir resigned from the BBC.
Michael Jackson Interviews
In 2003, Bashir interviewed American singer Michael Jackson. This was for a documentary called Living with Michael Jackson. Bashir followed Jackson for eight months. The show was watched by many people in the UK and US.
After the show aired, Jackson complained. He accused Bashir of yellow journalism (sensational reporting). Jackson and his cameraman released their own interview. It showed Bashir complimenting Jackson's Neverland Ranch.
Other Notable Interviews
In 2003, Bashir presented a documentary called Major Fraud. It was about British Army major Charles Ingram. Ingram tried to cheat on Who Wants To Be a Millionaire?. This documentary had a very large audience.
In 2004, Bashir interviewed Victor Conte. Conte was involved in a doping scandal. He admitted to running doping programs for athletes. He claimed that sports history was "full of corruption."
Bashir also interviewed other public figures. These included Louise Woodward and Jeffrey Archer.
Awards and Recognition
Bashir and producer Mike Robinson won a BAFTA Award in 1996. This was for their interview with Diana for Panorama. Bashir also won other awards for this interview. These included TV Journalist of the Year.
In May 2021, after the inquiry found Bashir used deceit, the BBC decided to return the BAFTA Award.
Other Activities
Bashir appeared as himself in the 2001 comedy film Mike Bassett: England Manager.
He also plays the bass guitar. In 2010, he released a reggae album called Bass Lion.
Portrayals in Media
Martin Bashir has been played by Prasanna Puwanarajah in two productions. These are the 2013 film Diana and the TV series The Crown.
About His Life
Bashir can speak Urdu. He became a Christian in his late teens. He is a committed Christian. While in New York, he sometimes visited Redeemer Presbyterian Church.
He is married to Deborah, and they have three children. In 2008, he was diagnosed with a brain tumour. In 2020, he was reported to be very unwell with the coronavirus. He also had heart surgery in late 2020 and other surgeries in 2021.
