Greg Dyke

Greg Dyke (born 20 May 1947) is a journalist and broadcaster. He was Director-General of the BBC from January 2000 until 29 January 2004 when he resigned following heavy criticism of the BBC's news reporting process in the Hutton Inquiry.

After the Hutton Enquiry

On November 28 2003 Greg Dyke was formally appointed by the University of York as its new Chancellor, replacing Dame Janet Baker, who had served in the post since November 1991. There was some controversy regarding his appointment in the midst of the Iraq Dossier scandal. He officially took the post in August 2004. In this role, he is the honorific and ceremonial head of the University, as well as heading the University Development Board. He has also made a personal grant to the new Department of Theatre, Film and Television, to found the Greg Dyke Chair in Film and Television. However, this post will not be filled until the construction of new, specially-designed facilities, intended to open in 2008.

Related Topics:
November 28 - 2003 - University of York - Dame Janet Baker - November - 1991 - August - 2004

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On February 6 2004 Dyke announced that he had signed a six-figure book contract with HarperCollins. The book ("Inside Story"), subsequently published in September 2004, goes into detail about Dyke's opinion on the relationship between the BBC and the British government, and of the Dr David Kelly affair and Hutton Inquiry. It has had a poor critical reception. At the Cheltenham Literary Festival in October 2004, Dyke accused the government of "trying to kill" Andrew Gilligan.

Related Topics:
February 6 - 2004 - HarperCollins - David Kelly - Hutton Inquiry - Cheltenham

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There are similarities between the enforced resignation of Alasdair Milne over Zircon a few months before the 1987 election and Dyke's resignation over the reporting of military intelligence issues the year before the 2005 election, though Dyke took responsibility for flaws in the control of live broadcasting whereas Milne was 'sacked' for yet to be broadcast investigative research. The departure of Greg Dyke also has echoes of the removal of Hugh Greene in 1969, who fell from the favour of Labour Prime Minister Harold Wilson (against a background of the Vietnam War), in part due to Greene's defence of robust reporting, as well as his support for provocative and controversial material.

Related Topics:
Alasdair Milne - Zircon - Hugh Greene - 1969 - Harold Wilson - Vietnam War

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In July 2004 Dyke was awarded honorary doctorates from the University of Sunderland and Middlesex University. In his acceptance speech for the latter, he attacked the government over its stance on the Iraq war heavily, and maintained that the Andrew Gilligan story was essentially true, the story government dossier was sexed up and that the government staged a "witch hunt" to deflect from the real issues surrounding the Iraq war.

Related Topics:
2004 - University of Sunderland - Middlesex University - Andrew Gilligan

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On May 2 2005 the former Labour supporter Dyke went public at a Liberal Democrat press conference and said that "Democracy was under threat if Labour was elected for a third term".

Related Topics:
May 2 - 2005 - Labour - Liberal Democrat

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