Thompson didn't know Savile was 'pressing concern'

Ex-BBC DG says he knew of Newsnight investigation, but if he had known scale of allegations, would have 'acted differently'

Mark Thompson has said that he did not know that Jimmy Savile's behaviour was a "pressing concern" while he was BBC director general, but that if he had he would have "acted very differently".

Thompson, who left the BBC in September and starts as chief executive of the New York Times Company next month, is facing scrutiny in the US about the Savile sex abuse scandal before taking up one of the most high-profile jobs in American media.

"I had no reason to believe that his conduct was a pressing concern," he said in an interview with the New York Times published on Tuesday. "Had I known about the nature of the allegations and the credible allegations that these horrific... [via Guardian - Media]