Former BBC presenter charged with three counts of making indecent images of children

nytimes

Former Top BBC Anchor Charged with Making Indecent Images of Children

Breitbart

Former BBC Presenter Charged with Making Indecent Images of Children

Former BBC presenter Huw Edwards charged with making indecent images of children

Huw Edwards charged with making indecent images of children

Guardian

One of the biggest names in British television plead guilty to three counts of making indecent images of children on Wednesday.

Huw Edwards, 62, joined the BBC 40 years ago and went onto become the lead news anchor for its flagship news program for more than two decades.

The Associated Press

However, after a year of rumors and speculation, his fall from grace was confirmed Wednesday when he entered the guilty pleas during a 26-minute hearing at the Westminster Magistrates' Court in London.

The court heard how Edwards had been sent a total of 377 sexually explicit images by an adult male on WhatsApp — 41 of those were indecent images of children. Of those 41, seven were considered to be in the worst category and mostly included children believed to be aged between 13 and 15. One child was estimated to be between the ages of seven and nine.

Philip Evans KC, representing Edwards in court, said there was no indication that the former BBC presenter created any images "in the traditional sense of the word." Under UK law, the term "making" can include opening, accessing, downloading and storing the content on a device.

Edwards was released on bail pending a sentencing hearing on Sept. 16. While he may receive a prison sentence of roughly 10 years, prosecutors conceded that it may be more appropriate to seek a suspended sentence, meaning Edwards would not be imprisoned unless convicted for another crime.

ap #1

nytimes #1

Breitbart #1

CBS #1

CNN #1

Guardian #1

The Associated Press #

Guardian #

Karwai Tang/Contributor/Getty Images News via Getty Images

UK: Ex-BBC Anchor Pleads Guilty to Child Pornography Charges

Huw Edwards was the face of the BBC, one of Britain's most trusted institutions, for decades. No one knew he had this dark side — but now that the charges have been confirmed, this will follow him wherever he goes for the rest of his existence.

While this is the end of Edwards' career, questions will loom over the BBC about how they handled this situation. How soon did they know and did they take sufficient action? The broadcaster may suffer long-term reputational damage as a result of how it dealt with this.

How the Huw Edwards scandal might affect the BBC’s reputation

There's a 61% chance that the United Kingdom will join the European Economic Area before 2040, according to the Metaculus prediction community.

UK: Ex-BBC Anchor Pleads Guilty to Child Pornography Charges

UK: Ex-BBC Anchor Pleads Guilty to Child Pornography Charges

The Spin

Metaculus Prediction

Articles on this story

Sign Up for Our Free Newsletters
Sign Up for Our Free Newsletters

UK: Ex-BBC Anchor Pleads Guilty to Child Pornography Charges

UK: Ex-BBC Anchor Pleads Guilty to Child Pornography Charges

The Spin

Metaculus Prediction

Articles on this story

Sign Up for Our Free NewslettersSign Up for Our Free Newsletters

Sign Up for Our Free Newsletters
Sign Up for Our Free Newsletters