Christa Ackroyd: Why social media still found me guilty after I had been vindicated over BBC tax case

If there is one well worn phrase which I detest it is the old adage ‘there’s no smoke without fire’. Because there is. Some people are entirely innocent but that doesn’t stop people declaring themselves judge and jury especially in the court of social media. And that I detest. It is why I am always so careful what I write in this column. Because every word written has the potential to wound .
By Christa Ackroyd
Published 5th Aug 2023, 06:00 BST

Three men have walked free this week and now face the world as innocent men. But as I know only too well that will not stop the keyboard warriors wading in with their unwanted comments as they always do.

A couple of weeks ago I was alerted to a comment on social media which floored me. I thought I had made it perfectly clear that my well reported tax case had been resolved after a decade of rumours and whispers. That the BBC had, after apologising in the House of Commons, paid me and around a hundred others compensation in light of their flawed contracts which led to the Inland Revenue declaring they were more akin to contracts of employment, even though they were drawn up by the BBC and the only method of engagement on offer. That a judge called me honest, that a judge found me blameless didn’t seem to matter. According to this keyboard warrior I had fled to Australia because the police (who were never involved) were after me.

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So should I laugh it off? Should I respond? Should I threaten legal action? No because in the end it is just not worth it. There is too much life to live and yes I can say without conceit, too many other outlets for my talents and my passions. But boy did it hurt. And boy has it costs me dearly. I lost a job which I loved (I was the only one of the hundred to lose mine being the first case), I lost my house and at times my sanity. Were it not for friends and yes members of the public who believed in me I could have drowned in a sea of despair. But I didn’t. I came out fighting. And have found both resolution and peace, though it has taken me years to be able to say that and mean it.

Christa AckroydChrista Ackroyd
Christa Ackroyd

Acceptance is a long time coming. This week three men walked free from court after cases that will change their lives forever. One was found not guilty, another was declared not guilty after serving 17 years in prison and one was found guilty of killing his wife but was not jailed. And my heart goes out to each of them as they try and rebuild their lives. Because it won’t be easy, no matter the verdicts.

First came the case of Kevin Spacey