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Martin Bashir

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Martin Bashir
Bashir at Calvary Baptist Church in Manhattan on May 5, 2007
Born (1963-01-19) 19 January 1963 (age 61)
Wandsworth, England,
United Kingdom
Occupation(s)Political commentator
Journalist
News anchor
musician
Years active1986–present
SpouseDeborah Bashir
Martin Bashir
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Martin Bashir (born 19 January 1963) is a British journalist, who was a political commentator for MSNBC, hosting Martin Bashir,[1] and a correspondent for NBC's Dateline NBC. He was previously an anchor for ABC's Nightline after initially gaining prominence on British television with his BBC interview with Diana, Princess of Wales, and then his controversial series of interviews Michael Jackson on ITV. On December 4, 2013, Bashir resigned from his position at MSNBC after he made controversial comments about the former Governor of Alaska and Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin.[2]

Early life

Bashir was born in Wandsworth, South London, to parents of Pakistani Christian origin, and grew up in Handsworth. He was educated at the state comprehensive Wandsworth School for Boys, King Alfred's College of Higher Education, Winchester (since 2004 the University of Winchester), studying English and History from 1982–1985 and Kings College London. He is fluent in English, and Urdu. He identifies himself as a committed Christian.[3]

Career

He started work as a journalist in 1986. He worked for the BBC until 1999 on programmes including Songs of Praise, Public Eye and Panorama and then he joined ITV, working on special documentary programmes and features for Tonight with Trevor McDonald.

Bashir came to wide prominence in 1995 when he interviewed (for the BBC's Panorama programme) Diana, Princess of Wales about her failed marriage to the Prince of Wales.[4][5] Since then he has conducted interviews with, among others, Louise Woodward, the five suspects in the Stephen Lawrence case, Michael Barrymore, Jeffrey Archer, Major Charles Ingram, and Joanne Lees.

Bashir was employed by ABC and co-anchored their current affairs show Nightline. Along with Cynthia McFadden and Terry Moran, he took over Nightline from Ted Koppel in 2005.

In August 2010 Bashir left ABC for MSNBC where he served as a political commentator for MSNBC until December 4, 2013, as well as an occasional substitute host for Lawrence O'Donnell.[1]

Bashir had a role as himself in the satirical comedy film Mike Bassett: England Manager.

Michael Jackson interviews

In 2003, Bashir conducted a series of interviews with pop singer Michael Jackson, as part of a documentary for ITV, which Uri Geller, a friend of Jackson's, had arranged. Following the broadcast, which was viewed by 14 million in the UK and 38 million in the US, Jackson complained to the Independent Television Commission and the Broadcasting Standards Commission, accusing Bashir of yellow journalism, claiming that he deliberately doctored the recordings in order to paint Jackson in an unflattering light,[6] as well as emphasising the allegations of child molestation made against Jackson. In an interview with Louis Theroux, Geller said that he felt betrayed by Bashir, and claimed that the ITV documentary had ruined Geller's own relationship with Michael.[7] The New York Times called Bashir's journalism style "callous self-interest masked as sympathy."[8]

In response, Jackson and his personal cameraman released a rebuttal interview, which showed Bashir complimenting Jackson for the "spiritual" quality of the Neverland Ranch. Bashir also described Jackson as a wonderful father and said that Jackson's relationship with his children "almost makes me weep".[9]

Dieter Wiesner, the pop star's manager from 1996 to 2003, said of Bashir's documentary:

"It broke him. It killed him. He took a long time to die, but it started that night. Previously the drugs were a crutch, but after that they became a necessity."[10]

Bashir later said of Jackson during ABC's coverage of his death,

"When I made the documentary, there was a small part that contained a controversy concerning his relationship with young people. But the truth is that he was never convicted of any crime, and I never saw any wrongdoing myself."[11]

Sarah Palin comments and resignation from MSNBC

On November 15, 2013, Bashir attacked Sarah Palin for comments that she made comparing the Federal debt to slavery.[12] Bashir attempted to counter Palin's comparison by referencing the cruel and barbaric punishment of slaves described by slave overseer Thomas Thistlewood, specifically a punishment called "Derby's dose" which involved forcing slaves to defecate or urinate into the mouth of another slave as punishment. Bashir then concluded by saying "When Mrs. Palin invokes slavery, she doesn’t just prove her rank ignorance. She confirms if anyone truly qualified for a dose of discipline from Thomas Thistlewood, she would be the outstanding candidate."[13][14] After many complaints were made against his comments, Bashir apologised on November 18, 2013, stating among other things: "My words were wholly unacceptable. They were neither accurate, nor fair. They were unworthy of anyone who would claim to have an interest in politics."[15][14]

On December 2, 2013, Dylan Byers of Politico reported that "Sources at the network said Bashir had been temporarily suspended from the network following graphic remarks he made last month about the former governor from Alaska."[14]

On December 4, 2013, Bashir resigned from MSNBC, as a direct result of his comments about Palin.[2][16][17] He issued a statement upon his resignation that said, "I deeply regret what was said, will endeavor to work hard at making constructive contributions in the future and will always have a deep appreciation for our viewers."[2]

Music

Bashir plays the electric bass guitar.[18] He released his first reggae album, "Bass Lion", on October 26, 2010.[19]

References

  1. ^ a b "Nightline's Martin Bashir Headed to MSNBC, Dateline". TVGuide.com.
  2. ^ a b c Christopher, Tommy. Martin Bashir Resigns From MSNBC, Mediaite, December 4, 2013.
  3. ^ Wells, Matt (2003-01-22). "Talk to me". The Guardian. Birmingham.
  4. ^ "Transcript of the BBC1 Panorama interview with the Princess of Wales". Great Interviews of the 20th century. The Guardian. Retrieved 3 October 2010.
  5. ^ "Neophyte reporter makes journalistic coup". Manila Standard. November 18, 1995. Retrieved 3 October 2010.
  6. ^ Branigan, Tania (6 February 2003). "I was betrayed by Bashir, rages Jackson". Star complains to TV watchdogs over interview. The Guardian. Retrieved 24 November 2013. Yesterday Debbie Rowe, Jackson's ex-wife and the mother of his two eldest children, told GMTV that no one could be a better father. "It breaks my heart that anyone could truly believe Michael would do anything to harm our children, they are the most important thing in his life."
  7. ^ Yapp, Will (Director); Theroux, Louis (Writer) (2003-11-17). Louis, Martin & Michael (Television production). BBC.
  8. ^ Stanley, Alessandra (2003-02-06). "TELEVISION REVIEW; A Neverland World Of Michael Jackson". The New York Times. Retrieved 2009-06-28.
  9. ^ Low, Valentine (2009-06-27). "Michael Jackson: PR suicide with the help of Martin Bashir". The Times. London. Retrieved 2009-06-28.
  10. ^ "Former manager unveils scale of Michael Jackson's drug use". Telegraph.co.uk. London. 2009-07-01. Retrieved 2009-07-04.
  11. ^ "Bashir: Jacko was the greatest". The Sun. London. 2009-06-27.
  12. ^ "MSNBC not commenting on whether further action contemplated against Bashir", Associated Press via Washington Post (November 19, 2013).
  13. ^ Williams, Rob. "Martin Bashir says Sarah Palin is an 'idiot' and suggests someone should defecate in her mouth", The Independent (November 18, 2013).
  14. ^ a b c Byers, Dylan. MSNBC's Martin Bashir 'on vacation' after Sarah Palin remarks, Politico, December 2, 2013.
  15. ^ Coscarelli, Joe. "MSNBC Host Sorry for Saying Disgusting Thing About Sarah Palin’s Mouth", New York (November 18, 2013).
  16. ^ Airens, Chris (4 December 2013). "Martin Bashir Out at MSNBC". TVNewser. Retrieved 4 December 2013. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  17. ^ Kurtz, Howard. Martin Bashir quits at MSNBC over Palin slur, FOX News, December 4, 2013.
  18. ^ NBC Universal. "Martin Bashir". NBC Universal. Retrieved December 2, 2013.
  19. ^ Salisbury, Vanita (February 15, 2012). "Martin Bashir Can't Stand the Cost of Cat Boarding". New York Magazine. Retrieved December 2, 2013.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Martin Bashir.
Preceded by
Ted Koppel 		Nightline anchor
November 28, 2005 – August 6, 2010
With Terry Moran and Cynthia McFadden 		Succeeded by
Bill Weir
With Terry Moran and Cynthia McFadden

Template:Nightline Anchors

Template:Persondata

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