Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Former Fleet Street editor Janet Street-Porter has revealed she was aware of rumours concerning Sir Jimmy Savile's alleged abuse of underage girls when she worked at the BBC during the late 1980s.
Speaking on Question Time, Street-Porter, who joined the BBC as an executive in 1987, said: "I was aware of the rumours about Jimmy Savile, I was also aware of rumours about other people.
"There was a culture, and it was a generational thing, in areas of light entertainment behaviour was tolerated."
The broadcaster added: "I feel that the reason these women never came forward before was nobody would have believed them because Jimmy Savile raised so much money for charity and he used the money that he raised for charity as a bargaining power to buy silence from national newspapers.
"If ever there was a time when someone might have blown the whistle on him, he would threaten those newspapers and those reporters that that charity money would not go to those hospitals."
Street-Porter also said that even if she had raised the rumours with senior BBC executives nobody would have taken any notice.
"A lot of people in the BBC knew what was going on," she said.
"I heard the rumours but I was working in an environment that was totally male.
"Do you really think that if I said to someone at the BBC higher up than me this was going on - they wouldn't gave taken any notice of me whatsoever."
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments