Awards and citations:


1997: Le Prix du Champagne Lanson Noble Cuvée Award for investigations into Champagne for the Millennium investment scams

2001: Le Prix Champagne Lanson Ivory Award for investdrinks.org

2011: Vindic d'Or MMXI – 'Meilleur blog anti-1855'

2011: Robert M. Parker, Jnr: ‘This blogger...’:

2012: Born Digital Wine Awards: No Pay No Jay – best investigative wine story

2012: International Wine Challenge – Personality of the Year Award




Wednesday 22 February 2012

Jim's bid for Z-list celebrity now on-line!

Finkus Bripp@Conference in Portugal December 2010


Finkus Bripp's interview – 'The JIM BUDD INTERVIEW - "CAMPOGATE" AND "THIS BLOGGER" – is now up on-line here. Thanks Finkus!


Matter of record:
As of 18.20 (GMT) 22.2.2012 I have not been contacted by Robert Parker, The Wine Advocate or anyone carrying out the investigation Parker set up to look into events in Spain. I have received no requests for further assistance or further information nor any request for a meeting. The last communication was from Stephen Miller on 8th February 2012. See here:


'Thank you so much for your assistance.

Stephen Miller'
Stephen A. Miller | Cozen O'Connor
1900 Market Street | Philadelphia, PA 19103-3508 | P: 215.665.4736 | F: 215.689.3815
samiller@cozen.com | www.cozen.com

15 comments:

Luc Charlier said...

Impossible to decently download your interview – French villages with slow ADSL are lagging a score of years behind the rest of Europe. Is there no “printable version”?
By the way, the old bore which I am doesn’t see the point of “video or clip interviews”. Of course, it serves the journalist’s lazyness well: he doesn’t need to actually “write” an article. I don’t find this medium more attractive, more lively, more interactive than the good old ones – that is, except when the interviewee is Lady Gaga, Paris Hilton or Shakira. But Jim ....

Jim's Loire said...

Luc. Rather than trying to download the interview I'd suggest you go and prune a few vines or clear out the attic.

Jim's Loire said...

Luc. PS I think you do an injustice to the masterful Finkus.

Luc Charlier said...

Cool down, Mr Jim. I manage my time-schedule and agenda allright.
But I sense a hint of jealousy for me prefering Shakira’s lips to your moustache.
As of Finkus, it was no personal attack. I was talking in general terms and I persist.
I do love “written” material (which can be thought over and possibly even slightly edited) and am no fan of the visual straightforward interview where you have no second chance.

Jim's Loire said...

Bonjour Luc. You are mistaken – je suis super-cool ce matin. Shawly both are valid media for expression?

Frank Kaemmer said...

Great, Jim Budd really rocks!
The only thing I found disappointing is the surprisingly conservative design of your shirt this time....

Jim's Loire said...

Thank you Frank. Although I bow to your opinion, I didn't think the shirt was especially conservative. Perhaps at some point I'll post a pic of it.

Susan McHenry said...

Fantastic Interview! Congrats to both Jim and Finkus. And Jim, I'll take your moustache over Sharkira's lips anyday. Your wife is a lucky woman.

Jim's Loire said...

Many thanks Susan. I'll leave my wife to comment on her good fortune or or not!

Anonymous said...

Nice interview Jim.

Regarding the Jancis connection, she probably defended Campo since she was the one who recommended Campo to the MoW and she also has benefited quite nicely ($$$)from the two Winefuture events. Any Campo scandal could quickly tarnish her reputation.

Anonymous said...

Dear Mr. Budd,

I am a journalist by profession and a wine aficionado by heart, specialized in the Spanish judicial and legal system. Please allow me to remain anonymous in the interest of protecting the organizations I work for. Reading some of your posts the following immediately comes to mind:
a. You have acussed Robert Parker of a breach of his ethical code. All based on emails and comments made by third parties.In any case, this is not illegal and should be a problem just between Parker, Jay Miller and Campo.
b. As a rule of thumb in professional journalism you are to use third party correspondance without permission of the parties. In every country of the EU it is ilegal to publish emails, letters or recordings without the consent of the parties. In many cases you will need a court orther to do so. E.g. Judge Garzon in Spain has been sentenced and inhabilitated for 11 years for doing exactly the same. You have clearly breeched the law Mr. Budd, there is no question about it, as well as a basic rule of journalism.
c. I don´t believe that you have a degree in journalism. Correct me if am wrong. I had to go to university for 5 years to obtain a degree before I could call myself a journalist and apply for a job as such. Like in most countries.
d. According to the above, you have acussed Pancho Campo of something that you also have been falsy claiming to be. Based on your your own arguments, you are as much of a journalist as Campo is a medical doctor. At least, as far as my investigations show, Campo did spend several years in Medical School and completed his training at a very prestigious hospital in Barcelona. He did not graduated because the university was closed down. I understand that you have not spend a single day at any school of journalism.
d. King Juan Carlos was born in Rome. According to another of your arguments he should not be called King of Spain or Spanish King. If Campo holds a Spanish passport he is then the first Spanish Master of Wine, regardless of his birth place. Wrong again Mr. Budd.

I personally believe that very few people really care about your acussations anymore. Too many errors in your statements, poor research based in Google, attacks that fall onto personal vendetta and affaires that have nothing to do with the real issue. Your video interview is just an embarrasment which made you lose total credibility. This is why no body cares to sue you.

Regards,

G.P.

PS. I have nothing to do with Parker, Miller, Campo or any wine organization. Please dont go down this avenue!

Jim's Loire said...

GP. Thank you for your comment.

One point of information: I have never claimed to have any formal journalistic training.

Jim's Loire said...

GP A few questions please?

What was the name of the medical school and where was it? Also the name of the very prestigious hospital in Barcelona? What university was closed down?

Many thanks.

Anonymous said...

GP:

You have to be kidding. Jim's coverage on the Campogate affair has been very well researched and objective.

I would also like to see some sources backing up your claims on Campo's medical education. Your statement "Campo did spend several years in Medical School and completed his training at a very prestigious hospital in Barcelona. He did not graduated because the university was closed down" sounds pretty flimsy. Anybody going through medical school would not give up on their career just because the school closed. You can transfer to another institution and finish.

I would be more inclined to believe that the reason Campo did not finished his medical studies had to do with the financial burden Campo's father placed on his family after his arrest. Campo's father had gambling problems and decided to pass as an ETA member and extort doctors and business people in Barcelona to get money to pay for his gambling debts and luxurious lifestyle. If you think for a moment this sounds outlandish, do a search on Francisco Campo Rivera and you will find from a few reputable newspapers (La Vanguardia, El País, etc.) that I am not making this up. I would also be inclined to believe that Campo's father arrest and conviction pretty much placed a financial burden on his family and the son had to abandon his medical career because he could not afford paying for his studies. Campo's father arrest happened around the time Campo (Son) was doing his medical studies in the Dominican Republic.

I am under the impression that you are confusing Campo's father career in the medical field with Campo's (Son) medical experience. Campo's father was an anesthesiologist in a Barcelona hospital before he was convicted for ETA extortion charges.

FWIW, nobody has sued Jim because they do not have any grounds to sue him.

EN

PS I have met both Miller and Campo. I also have many friends in the Spanish wine industry. Besides being a Spanish wine afficionado, I am not involved in the Spanish wine industry.

Jim's Loire said...

Thanks anon. I'm still hoping that GP will provide some detail for his claims about Campo's medical studies. The story about not graduating because the university closing down has some echoes with the story about the lost Dubai lawyer, who is said to have advised Campo that he could safely leave Dubai. Following this advice Campo unfortunately lost contact with this lawyer.

Campo claimed in an interview published in the programme for the 2004 wine seminar that he completed his medical studies at the age of 21 – a great achievement for one so young. It does seem curious that such a brilliant student did not graduate.

The more likely explanation is that the arrest and imprisonment of Campo's father as anon describes made it impossible for Pancho to continue his studies in the Dominican Republic as these were either in part or completely funded by Campo snr.

It is possible that Campo started his medical studies in Barcelona and then continued them in the Dominican Republic. If this is the case it would suggest that Campo failed his first year in Barcelona. It is unlikely that he would opt to study in the Dominican Republic if he was able to continue in Barcelona.

Hopefully GP can help to clarify this.