I promise we will be fair to all
Bernardino was a big one, Colorado Springs, Texas, I have literally lost count. It becomes very distressing. “Nothing compared to the people involved, obviously, but you know that despite every mass shooting you cover, you wil l be covering another one. “That is not usually the case with a tragedy in the developed world. Usually, lessons are learned.” On a day-to-day level, James, from Forfar but resident in Glasgow, loved life in California with wife Rachael and children Stella, seven, and Dylan, four. He said: “It was an amazing transformation, a wonderful outdoor lifestyle for the children. Our lives have been greatly enriched by living in California.” The family came home because of The Nine, which will launch on Monday, February 25. James said: “It just seemed a really good opportunity to work for a very ambitious new programme and channel, which I think is something Scotland deserves.”
The Nine promises a different kind of news, for Scotland, looking to attract a younger and more diverse audience and combining international, UK and Scottish stories.
James said: “The programme looks fantastic and people will be surprised by the international outlook. We will tell Scottish stories but for me it is a great thing that Scotland has a programme with a global world view.”
Wherever he reports from, James hopes it will be safer than Hawaii. He was covering Hurricane Lane when a tree fell on him, a mishap captured on audio for all time.
He said: “What is annoying about the tree thing is that I really dislike the idea of reporters standing out in hurricanes doing dangerous live broadcasts.
“I know this sounds ridiculous but it wasn’t that windy. The hurricane wasn’t there yet. People were walking around going to the supermarket.
“I was sitting on the pavement sending my report to London when from 30 foot up, a big limb of this tree landed straight on my head. I didn’t know what had happened. I just knew I was crushed into the ground and it seemed to go on for a long time.
“It was way more frightening than the audio makes out. It was sore and I was lucky.
“It could have been worse. I had just done the Today programme live, so five minutes earlier it would have been on air.” No matter how good the intentions are for the new channel, it won’t please all of the people all of the time.
The Nine will be under particular scrutiny, and James believes the only approach is to focus on the quality and fairness of its journalism.
He said: “I have been here since 1998 and I have tried very hard to provide highquality, factual journalism which is fair to all sides.
“The people I have worked with closely over the past 20 years have all tried to do the same. There is a very deep commitment in this building to fairness, impartiality and accuracy.
“I think if you are genuine in that commitment, which we are, and you work with those guiding principles, then if you are criticised it is easier to shrug off that criticism.
“Some people will see the fact it has ‘British’ above the door and think it is impossible for the organisation to provide a fair account of Scotland. I don’t accept that, I don’t recognise that.
“I think it is perfectly possible to be impartial and independent, and I think me and my colleagues have provided that service for a long time.”