[1] He was a presenter on British and American television and for the BBC's Panorama programme, for which he gained an interview with Diana, Princess of Wales under false pretences in 1995.

He resigned from MSNBC in December 2013 after making "ill-judged" comments about former Alaska governor and vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin.

In 2020, the BBC's director general Tim Davie apologised to the princess's brother, Earl Spencer, for Bashir's use of faked bank statements to secure his 1995 Panorama interview with her.

[5] Former Justice of the Supreme Court Lord Dyson conducted an independent inquiry[6][7] and concluded that Bashir had commissioned fake statements to deceive Earl Spencer to gain access to Diana, and in so doing had "acted inappropriately and in serious breach of the 1993 edition of the Producers' Guidelines on straight dealing.

In 2008, while working as a reporter for Nightline, Bashir was suspended from ABC News after making remarks in a speech at the Asian American Journalists Association convention in Chicago that were described as "crude and sexist".

In January 2013, Bashir was criticised for misleading viewers by airing an edited clip of Neil Heslin, whose son was killed at the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, testifying in court.

Heslin asked his audience if there was one person in the room who could provide a reason why carrying an assault weapon was necessary: 'Heslin paused for five seconds and looked around him.

MSNBC later aired an unedited video of the testimony, inviting viewers to decide for themselves whether the response to Heslin's challenge was "heckling" or not.

"[22][23] On 2 December, Bashir was suspended by the network; he resigned two days later,[4][24][22][25][26] issuing a statement saying: "I deeply regret what was said, will endeavour to work hard at making constructive contributions in the future and will always have a deep appreciation for our viewers.

"[24][27][28] In late 2016, Bashir returned to BBC News as religious affairs correspondent, succeeding Caroline Wyatt in the post.

[29][30] He left the BBC on 14 May 2021 after a period of ill health and shortly before the publication of a report from an inquiry into his 1995 interview with Diana, Princess of Wales.

Five months later, two reporters for the Mail On Sunday broke the story that Bashir had secured the interview using falsified documents to manipulate the princess's family.

25 years after the famous interview, ITV aired a documentary about the case examining Bashir's manipulations and the BBC's response.

[40] The documentary reignited the controversy, and BBC director-general Tim Davie apologised to Earl Spencer,[41] who rejected the apology and demanded an inquiry.

[46] On 18 November 2020, the BBC announced an independent investigation into how the interview was obtained, to be headed by former Supreme Court judge John Dyson.

[47] Later that month Bashir told the BBC inquiry that he was not responsible for spreading smears about the royal family to convince the princess to sit for the interview, and it was probably Diana herself who was the source of those claims.

[48] In May 2021, Dyson's inquiry found Bashir guilty of using "deceitful methods" and breaching BBC editorial conduct to obtain the interview.

[51] In July 2022 the BBC apologised to the ex-nanny in the High Court, and agreed to pay an undisclosed amount of damages, thought to be in the region of £200,000,[52] over the unfounded claims that she had had an affair with the Prince of Wales.

[56]Bashir later said during ABC's coverage of Jackson's death: I think it's worth remembering he was probably, singly, the greatest dancer and musician the world has ever seen.

But the truth is that he was never convicted of any crime, I never saw any wrongdoing myself and whilst his lifestyle may have been a bit unorthodox, I don't believe it was criminal and I think the world has now lost the greatest entertainer it's probably ever known.

[58] The original programme featuring Ingram, recorded in September 2001, was withheld from broadcast because the production team quickly became suspicious.

"[61] Bashir also conducted interviews with public figures including Louise Woodward, the five suspects in the Stephen Lawrence case, Michael Barrymore, Jeffrey Archer, Joanne Lees,[62] and George Best.

[64][65][66] In May 2021, after the conclusion of the Dyson inquiry that found Bashir guilty of deceit in obtaining the interview with Diana, the BBC decided to return the BAFTA Award.