The UK government has announced Dr. Samir Shah CBE, an Indian-origin media executive, as the preferred candidate for BBC’s chairman position, succeeding Richard Sharp. Sharp’s resignation followed scrutiny over email exchanges with former UK PM Boris Johnson, leading to an official inquiry that revealed his failure to disclose aiding Johnson in acquiring an £800,000 loan.
Born in Aurangabad in 1952, Shah moved to the UK in 1960 and currently serves as the CEO of Juniper TV, a prominent media company. He embarked on his broadcasting journey in 1979 at London Weekend Television and later took the helm as the head of BBC’s television current affairs in 1987. Shah notably led BBC’s political journalism programs from 1994 to 1998.
In 1998, he acquired Juniper TV and subsequently became one of BBC’s three non-executive directors in 2007.
