Without responsibility, there is no legitimacy to journalism. With that in mind, it was both sobering and commendable to see the recent resignations at the BBC over the Iraq dossier/David Kelly suicide scandal.
According to a report handed down by Lord Hutton (a senior judge brought out of retirement to conduct the inquiry), BBC reporter Andrew Gilligan was reckless in reporting that PM Tony Blair had “sexed up” a report on Iraq’s missile capabilities in order to garner support for the US-led invasion. Gilligan cited weapons expert Dr. David Kelly as the source that claimed the British government knew that Iraq did not have the capabilities to launch missiles at Britain within 45 minutes were false. After being exposed, Kelly slit his wrists.
In the wake of Lord Hutton’s report, BBC Chairman Gavyn Davies and director general Greg Dyke resigned their posts, as did Gilligan. Their negligence (mostly Gilligan’s, to be fair) caused not only the death of a respected family man, but a loss in faith in one of the most venerable institutions in the world. One wonders, however, if journalists and politicians on this side of the Atlantic will step up and take responsibility for their errors in regards to the existence, or more accurately non-existence, of Weapons of Mass Destruction in Iraq.
Long touted as the reason for entering Iraq in the first place, President Bush has recently developed a convenient loss of memory on the issue, now answering most queries on the subject by pointing to the necessary removal of Saddam Hussein from office as the impetus for the attack.
Ironically, President Bush now has his own Hutton report to deal with, this one presented by former chief weapons inspector David Kay, who has come out and said that Iraq did not have any caches of weapons before the war.
Secretary of State Colin Powell has already come out to the media and expressed his reservations with the US’s course of action in light of this information, and has been chastised within the White House. But is Powell not just owning up to the fact that the US may have screwed up?
With the scope of intelligence that the CIA and other bodies have to draw upon, it is foolish to think the US was mistaken about the WMD question. Instead of attacking Powell, perhaps the White House should stop circling the wagons and admit that the removal of Saddam Hussein, and the message it would send to other Arab nations, was the real impetus of the invasion.
It may be far-fetched to ask for high-level resignations, but simply asking the Bush administration to take the high road for once may be a step in the right direction.
