Martin Bashir
Martin Bashir | |
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Bashir in May 2007.
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Born | Wandsworth, London, England |
19 January 1963
Alma mater | King's College London |
Occupation | Political commentator, journalist, news anchor, musician |
Years active | 1986–2013, 2015–present |
Spouse(s) | Deborah Bashir |
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Martin Bashir (born 19 January 1963) is a Pakistani-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 fly on the wall documentary with pop singer Michael Jackson on ITV. On 4 December 2013, Bashir resigned from his position at MSNBC after he made "ill-judged comments"[2] about the former Governor of Alaska and Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin.[3]
Contents
Early life
Bashir was born and raised in Wandsworth, London, to parents of Pakistani Christian origin. He was educated at the state comprehensive Wandsworth School for Boys and King Alfred's College of Higher Education, Winchester, studying English and History from 1982–1985 and King's College London.
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 4 December 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.
In 2003, Bashir presented a documentary titled "Major Fraud" detailing the story of British Army Major Charles Ingram who cheated his way to the prize money in a 2001 episode of Who Wants To Be a Millionaire.
Michael Jackson interviews
In 2003, Bashir conducted a series of interviews with pop singer Michael Jackson, as part of a ITV documentary Living with Michael Jackson, 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. 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 defended the documentary, stating, "I don't believe that I've betrayed Michael Jackson at all. I agreed that we would make an honest film about his life. The film was fair to his musical achievement and gave him every opportunity to explain himself. I'm not accusing anybody of being a child molester or a paedophile."[6]
Dieter Wiesner, the pop star's manager from 1996 to 2003, said of Bashir's documentary:
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It broke [Jackson]. 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.[7]
Bashir later said during ABC's coverage of Jackson's death:
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When I made the documentary, there was a small part that contained a controversy concerning [Jackson]'s relationship with young people. But the truth is that he was never convicted of any crime, and I never saw any wrongdoing myself.[8]
Juju Chang comments and suspension at ABC News
In 2008, while working as a reporter for Nightline, Bashir was suspended from ABC News after "making comments considered crude and sexist" during a dinner speech at the Asian American Journalists Association convention in Chicago.[2][9] During the speech, he stated, "I'm happy to be in the midst of so many Asian babes. I'm happy that the podium covers me from the waist down."[9] He continued and said that a speech should be "like a dress on a beautiful woman – long enough to cover the important parts and short enough to keep your interest – like my colleague Juju's,"[9] referring to Bashir's ABC News colleague Juju Chang, a reporter for 20/20.[9] ABC News suspended him.[9] He wrote an apology to the journalist association which stated, "Upon reflection, it was a tasteless remark that I now bitterly regret. I … hope that the continuing work of the organization will not be harmed or undermined by my moment of stupidity."[9]
Sarah Palin comments and resignation from MSNBC
On 15 November 2013, Bashir criticized Sarah Palin for comments that she made comparing the Federal debt to slavery.[10] 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 "if anyone truly qualified for a dose of discipline from Thomas Thistlewood, she would be the outstanding candidate."[11][12]
After many[citation needed] complaints, Bashir apologised on 18 November, 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."[12][13] On 2 December, Bashir was suspended by the network and then resigned two days later.[3][12][14][15] 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."[3][16]
Music
Bashir enjoys playing bass guitar.[17] He released a reggae album, Bass Lion, on 26 October 2010.[18]
Personal life
Bashir is fluent in English and Urdu. He identifies himself as a committed Christian,[19] and has attended Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York.[20][21]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Carter, Bill. Martin Bashir Resigns From MSNBC Over Palin Comments, New York Times, 4 December 2013.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Christopher, Tommy. Martin Bashir Resigns From MSNBC, Mediaite, 4 December 2013.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-160610/Bashir-defends-Jacko-interview.html
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- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4 9.5 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ "MSNBC not commenting on whether further action contemplated against Bashir", Associated Press via Washington Post (19 November 2013).
- ↑ Williams, Rob. "Martin Bashir says Sarah Palin is an 'idiot' and suggests someone should defecate in her mouth", The Independent (18 November 2013).
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 Byers, Dylan. MSNBC's Martin Bashir 'on vacation' after Sarah Palin remarks, Politico, 2 December 2013.
- ↑ Coscarelli, Joe. "MSNBC Host Sorry for Saying Disgusting Thing About Sarah Palin’s Mouth", New York (18 November 2013).
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Kurtz, Howard. Martin Bashir quits at MSNBC over Palin slur, FOX News, 4 December 2013.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to [[commons:Lua error in Module:WikidataIB at line 506: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value).|Lua error in Module:WikidataIB at line 506: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value).]]. |
- Profile and Martin Bashir show at MSNBC
- Martin Bashir at the Internet Movie Database
- Works by or about Martin Bashir in libraries (WorldCat catalog)
- Martin Bashir Used Slavery Analogy in 2011 Will He Be Promoted
Preceded by | Nightline anchor 28 November 2005 – 6 August 2010 With Terry Moran and Cynthia McFadden |
Succeeded by Bill Weir With Terry Moran and Cynthia McFadden |
- Use dmy dates from June 2014
- Articles with hCards
- Pages with broken file links
- Articles with empty listen template
- Articles with unsourced statements from February 2015
- Commons category link from Wikidata
- 1963 births
- English television journalists
- English Christians
- British reporters and correspondents
- Living people
- People from Wandsworth
- English people of Pakistani descent
- Pakistani Christians
- Alumni of the University of Winchester
- Alumni of King's College London
- ABC News personalities
- British expatriates in the United States