What has Danny Cohen been up to?

Well, well, well! According to The Times, the BBC secretly organised that 'independent' protest letter from various celebrities.

The BBC Press Office appears to be squirming with embarrassment at the Times's scoop.

Here are some extracts from the article:

The BBC secretly helped to organise a celebrity letter warning David Cameron that plans to reform the corporation would damage Britain’s global standing, one of its top presenters has revealed. 

The BBC’s press office initially denied it had “anything to do” with the open letter, which was delivered to the prime minister on Tuesday and signed by stars including Dame Judi Dench and Sir David Attenborough......

The letter was presented as an independent protest against plans to reform the BBC, but The Times can reveal that executives at the highest level helped to co-ordinate it while the corporation officially denied all knowledge. 

Annie Nightingale, BBC Radio 1’s longest-serving presenter and one of the letter’s 29 signatories, said she had been invited to be a signatory by Ben Cooper, the controller of Radio 1. She had not seen the text of the letter before its publication. 

She said: “I bumped into Ben a couple of days ago. He said Danny Cohen [the director of BBC television] was putting this letter together and said, ‘Would you like to be included?’ I said, ‘Yeah’. I understood vaguely what it would say. I didn’t read the letter before it went out.” 

Ms Nightingale, the first female Radio 1 DJ, said that she had previously contacted Mr Cooper to express concern over potential BBC cuts and was fully supportive of the letter’s contents. 

“Before the letter I emailed Ben to say I was very concerned and would do whatever it takes,” she said. “That’s when he said Danny Cohen was inviting people to take part in the letter.”....... 

When presented with Ms Nightingale’s interview, the BBC press office did not deny that Mr Cohen and Mr Cooper had been involved but refused to elaborate......

The Times has asked via freedom of information laws for all correspondence relating to the letter sent between Mr Cohen and Mr Cooper as well as between other BBC executives......