Richard Ayre
{{Short description|British media executive}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
{{BLP sources|date=January 2010}}
Richard James Ayre is a media regulator, former BBC journalist and former member of the BBC Trust, the governing body of the British Broadcasting Corporation until its abolition in 2016. He is a former member for England of the Ofcom Content Board and chair of its Broadcast Review Committee. He started working for the BBC as a radio and television reporter in Belfast through the 1970s, before becoming the Home News Editor in London (1979–84), Head of BBC Westminster (1989–93), Controller of Editorial Policy (1993–96) and Deputy Chief Executive of BBC News (1996–2000).
In retirement he has broadcast from time to time on media issues, and conducted interviews as part of the BBC Oral Archive project. He is a trustee of the Egyptian Exploration Society, the charity which has sponsored archaeological excavations and research in Egypt for the past 140 years. In April 2022 he was appointed chair of the board of independent press regulator IMPRESS.{{Cite web|url=https://www.impress.press/news/richard-ayre-appointed-as-new-impress-chair.html|title = Richard Ayre appointed as new IMPRESS Chair | IMPRESS}} He is married to the artist Guy Burch.
Education
Ayre was educated at Hastings Grammar School, a former state grammar school (now known as Ark Alexandra Academy), in the seaside town of Hastings in East Sussex, followed by University College at Durham University, during which time he was President of Durham Students' Union (1970—1971). He was also Editor of Palatinate for Michaelmas term of 1969.{{cite journal |title=Palatinate |journal=Palatinate |date=4 December 1969 |issue=240 |page=2 |url=https://iiif.durham.ac.uk/index.html?manifest=t1mc534fp075&canvas=t1t7d278w617 |accessdate=11 December 2019}} His first journalistic scoop was witnessing an escape from Durham prison by John McVicar that he quickly reported in an interview with the BBC's Kate Adie, then a very junior local radio reporter. The incident is described in McVicar's biography McVicar by Himself.
BBC
Ayre began his professional career as a reporter in Northern Ireland. In 1988, the then Home Secretary Douglas Hurd banned Sinn Féin from the airwaves in response to Irish Republican Army bombing campaigns. It was seen by many as extremely damaging to freedom of speech and the press in Britain. When Ayre became Controller of Editorial Policy he took legal advice and was satisfied that the prohibition could not stop the use of actors' voices to replace the more cumbersome use of subtitling.{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/northernireland/archive/chronicle/1970s/essay2.shtml|title=BBC - Northern Ireland Chronicle - Learning Lessons, Richard Ayre|website=www.bbc.co.uk}} This is credited as having rendered the prohibition increasingly ridiculous. He also re-wrote the BBC's Producer Guidelines into the most comprehensive manual of programme-making ethics, which became a model for many broadcasters worldwide. He established Britain's first bi-media (television and radio) centre at BBC Millbank, introducing the first digital editing to British network journalism. In 1995, Ayre played a key part in steering the Panorama interview with Diana, Princess of Wales to air – a decision which infuriated the BBC's then Chairman Marmaduke Hussey.{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/panorama/50th_birthday/3198149.stm|title=50 Facts about Panorama|date=October 29, 2003|via=news.bbc.co.uk}} Lords Hall and Birt have declined to be interviewed about the débâcle and, with the death of Steve Hewlett, Ayre has been the only person directly concerned prepared to be interviewed about it and the subsequent controversy caused by the actions of the reporter Martin Bashir.Days that shook the BBC with David Dimbleby https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001bnqs
In March 2010, the government announced that Ayre was to join the BBC Trust - the governing body of the Corporation - replacing fellow journalist Richard Tait.{{cite web|url =https://www.bbc.co.uk/bbctrust/who_we_are/trustees/richard_ayre.html
| title = BBC Trust: Richard Ayre, Trustee
| author = BBC Trust
| date = 2010-03-18
| accessdate = 2017-05-22
}} Reappointed in 2014, Ayre chaired the Editorial Standards committee of the Trust, the final court of appeal for audience complaints about BBC content.
Freedom of Information
Richard Ayre became a founder member of the board of the Food Standards Agency,{{Cite web|url=http://www.food.gov.uk/news/newsarchive/2006/dec/ayreinterim|title=Food Standards Agency - Richard Ayre becomes Interim Deputy Chair|date=August 13, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070813090000/http://www.food.gov.uk/news/newsarchive/2006/dec/ayreinterim|archive-date=2007-08-13}} which pioneered open access with web casts of board meetings and fully published documentation. He was Chair of Article 19 (2003-2005), and was Freedom of Information Adjudicator for the Law Society (2001-2015).{{Cite web |language=en |access-date=25 August 2023 |title=Adjudication in a matter raised by Mr Gary Fusfield |url=http://www.lawsociety.org.uk/documents/downloads/foi_adjudication_fusfield_1209.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101227235438/http://www.lawsociety.org.uk/documents/downloads/foi_adjudication_fusfield_1209.pdf |archive-date=2010-12-27}} He led Ofcom's 2007 enquiry into abuse of premium rate telephone services in television programmes.{{Cite web|url=http://www.ofcom.org.uk/tv/ifi/prsinquiry/ayrereport/|title=Report of an inquiry into television broadcasters' use of premium rate telephone services in programmes | Ofcom|date=October 11, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071011005011/http://www.ofcom.org.uk/tv/ifi/prsinquiry/ayrereport/|archive-date=2007-10-11}} He conducted a review of broadcasting in Kuwait following the invasion by Iraq, and following the allied invasion he chaired the Editorial Review Board for Al Mirbad – the first independent Iraqi-run radio and TV station.{{Cite web|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/trust/mediadevelopment/story/2005/08/050815_almirbadreviewboard.shtml|title=BBC Worldservice Trust|date=September 9, 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060909141653/http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/trust/mediadevelopment/story/2005/08/050815_almirbadreviewboard.shtml|archive-date=2006-09-09}}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- [https://www.bbc.co.uk/bbctrust/who_we_are/trustees/richard_ayre BBC Trust biography: Richard Ayre]
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ayre, Richard James}}
Category:Alumni of University College, Durham
Category:English male journalists
Category:Trustees of the British Broadcasting Corporation
Category:Year of birth missing (living people)