BBC apologises and admits podcast breached editorial standards on key issue relating to Denis Donaldson's murder

The BBC have formally upheld a complaint brought by the daughter of Denis Donaldson, Jane Donaldson, concerning a high-profile BBC podcast examining the circumstances surrounding her father's murder.

The complaint related to the BBC Radio Ulster and BBC Sounds series Assume Nothing: The Stormont Spy Ring, which included claims by former Sunday World journalist Hugh Jordan regarding reporting he published before Mr Donaldson's murder in April 2006.

Following a detailed investigation by the BBC's Executive Complaints Unit (ECU), the corporation's highest editorial complaint body, the BBC concluded that the programme failed to meet its standards of due accuracy and had materially misled audiences on a central issue.

The complaint challenged statements made during the series that suggested Mr Jordan had not disclosed any information identifying where Denis Donaldson was living in County Donegal before his murder. During the programme, Mr Jordan stated:

"I said it was Donegal. I didn't say it was near Glenties. I didn't say anything. I gave no indication."

The programme subsequently reinforced that account through narration stating that journalists had not revealed Mr Donaldson's location beyond County Donegal.

However, following Ms Donaldson's complaint, the BBC located a Belfast edition of the relevant Sunday World article in its physical archives. The BBC confirmed that the article contained details identifying the area where Mr Donaldson was living and information relating to the cottage and its surroundings.

In its decision, the ECU concluded that:

“The question of whether Hugh Jordan had disclosed information about Denis Donaldson's whereabouts before his murder was an important element of the series and should have been properly verified against the contemporaneous reporting. Although the programme team had reviewed a digital archive version of the relevant Sunday World article, following the complaint they located a hard-copy version of a different edition of the paper in which the article included additional details identifying the area where Mr Donaldson was living and describing the cottage and its location. As a result, the ECU concluded that it was not duly accurate for the programmes to have given listeners the impression that no indication of Mr Donaldson's whereabouts in County Donegal had been published before his death, and that audiences had been materially misled. This aspect of the complaint was upheld.”

Jane Donaldson welcomed the ruling. She said:

“It is twenty years since daddy was murdered. Over that time, Hugh Jordan has been repeatedly claimed on the media that he never exposed the location of the cottage in which daddy and mammy were sheltering in Donegal. This is not a trivial or peripheral matter. The Police Ombudsman found that the visit by Jordan and a former police officer to the cottage in March 2006 led to a heightened risk to daddy’s life. Now, the BBC has confirmed that Jordan published an article six weeks before daddy was murdered exposing the location of the cottage within south west Donegal. This fully vindicates the central issue of my complaint. I welcome confirmation today by the BBC that it’s programme had failed in due accuracy and the apology it has offered to my family.

The truth about the role of Jordan, the former police officer who accompanied him, and others in the conspiracy which led to the exposure and murder of my daddy has yet to be fully uncovered. Today’s finding underlines that some of the individuals and agencies who retain relevant information to establishing the truth are outside the jurisdiction in which daddy was murdered. This strengthens my family’s appeal for an independent, public inquiry empowered to recover all information relevant to establishing the truth.”

The ruling is particularly significant in light of previous findings by the Police Ombudsman, who concluded that the PSNI assessed that publicity relating to Mr Donaldson's whereabouts increased the threat to his life in the period before his murder.

Enda McGarrity, Director at P.A. Duffy & Co Solicitors, said:

"This outcome represents a significant vindication for Jane Donaldson and her family.

The BBC has accepted that its programme failed to meet its own standards of due accuracy and that audiences were left with a misleading account of an important issue relating to the circumstances leading up to Denis Donaldson's murder.

Responsible and accurate journalism are essential when dealing with matters of such profound public importance. It should never fall to a bereaved family to take steps to correct the public record, particularly in respect of matters which of central importance to their own efforts to obtain justice and accountability.

Nearly twenty years after Denis Donaldson's murder, the family continues to seek truth, accountability and a full public examination of the circumstances surrounding his death. We will continue to support them in those efforts."