Chris Rogers (journalist)

Chris Rogers (born 1974) is a British broadcast journalist specialising in investigative journalism, and news presenter. He is among the long line up of presenters that began their career presenting BBC Newsround moving on to present and report for Sky News including its BAFTA Award-winning coverage of the 9/11 attacks. He then joined the Channel 4 RI:SE presenting team before heading to ITN'sITV News, and ITV's Tonight documentary series, where he presented and reported for London Today, London Tonight, ITV Evening News and produced and fronted numerous investigations for the News at Ten and the Tonight programme as ITV's Investigative Correspondent.He left ITN in 2009 to present BBC News. He has also made many investigations as a producer and reporter for the BBC's Panorama and the BBC's Our World documentary series. He is also an independent documentary film maker.

Rogers at the age of 19 became the youngest ever presenter of the children's daily news programme Newsround on BBC One in 1994. Among his investigative work Rogers is perhaps best known for his many films exposing the plight and poor treatment of abandoned children left in horrific institutions in Eastern Europe, particularly in Romania, just before it joined the EU. He won many awards for his work. In 2008 this led to the reporter taking the Duchess of York and her daughters undercover in Turkey and Romania for a Tonight special, on ITV. Turkey's foreign minister criticised Rogers' use of hidden cameras for breaching privacy and created diplomatic tensions and even the threat of arrest which Rogers later described in a book called Undercover. Rogers spent seven months undercover posing as a trafficker, secretly filming European gangs who sold women to UK brothels.

Rogers is a contributor for the Mail on Sunday and, since 2010, has been a presenter on the BBC News channel, BBC London News and BBC World News. He is also an investigative reporter for BBC News. Among his films for Panorama, Our World, Newsnight and BBC News he has investigated racism in football ahead of Euro 2012 for what was the controversial BBC TV programme Panorama: Stadiums of Hate. Rogers' BBC News report, "Child Sacrifice", exposing witchcraft in Uganda and the United Kingdom, was nominated for an Emmy award in 2012. In November 2010, August 2011 and March 2013 he fronted the BBC News at Six and BBC News at Ten, during separate strikes by BBC journalists.

In 2013, Rogers made a 30-minute investigative report for the BBC's programme Inside Out which uncovered a trend in sex gang child grooming. Rogers spoke to young Sikh girls who had been sexually groomed by gangs of Muslim men. The reporter gained access to the Sikh community and many victims said that to protect their family honour they had never spoke of or reported their abuse. Rogers also travelled to Indonesia where he posed as a coffee importer and uncovered animal cruelty behind a luxury coffee made out of civet cat droppings. Following the programme's broadcast, Harrods removed the civet cat coffee from its shelves. In February 2014 Rogers gained access to North Korea. For a BBC Panorama programme Rogers filmed with the future ruling elite who were studying at a western-funded university in Pyongyang and receiving a western-funded education. He also filmed in Pyongyang openly.

For a Panorama Special programme, on 4 June 2014, Rogers reported on what he described as the dark side of Brazil a few days ahead of the World Cup. The film revealed poverty, violence, drugs, and the prostitution of children as young as 9 years old. Panorama – Brazil: In the Shadow of the Stadiums has been described as his best work. The investigative reporter's work included filming undercover in Guatemala in what campaigners describe as the world's worst hospital where patients were filmed by the reporter in terrible conditions and the hospital's director admitted that the patients were sexually abused. In July 2015 Rogers made a special report for BBC News at Ten and Our World, reporting from the UK and Afghanistan on how unaccompanied child asylum seekers who had fled the war-torn country were being allowed to stay in the UK and live with foster families, but when they reached 18, they were deported back to Kabul after spending most of their lives in Britain, unable to speak the Afghan language, with little knowledge of Afghan culture and being terrified for their lives.

In 2012 he presented and produced a Panorama programme Euro 2012: Stadiums of Hate on antisemitism in Poland and Ukraine, Rogers was accused of, and in 2014 apologised for his 'inappropriate behavior' for conducting a 'basil fawlty style' goose step march to 'lift the spirits of the film crew'.

In 2015 he became the regular presenter of World News Today on BBC World News, the BBC News Channel and BBC Four. In 2016 Rogers secretly filmed in Thai jails exposing the illegal imprisonment of children. His BBC investigation set out to expose Thailand's treatment of asylum seekers, many being Christians fleeing persecution in Pakistan. Whole families are locked up in jails, some shackled, as the country has not signed up to any international agreements to help refugees and asylum seekers. The BBC Our World claimed that the UNHCR was invited by Thailand to deal with asylum seekers and find another country for them to go to, but the UN admitted to the BBC it was failing to help those seeking refuge because it was under-resourced.

Rogers is a relief presenter on BBC London 94.9's Breakfast and Drivetime. He also has his own radio show on BBC London every Sunday now with former Heart FM presenter Harriet Scott. He also presents OutSide Source on the BBC World Service. He regularly presented on BBC Five Live between 2003 and 2005.

In his very early career, starting in his teens, Rogers presented No Limits for Hallam FM and was also a presenter on London's Capital FM.

2015: BAFTA Shortlist: Panorama Special: In the Shadow of the Stadiums (BBC)

2015: Association of International Broadcasters - Best International Investigative Documentary: Our World: The World's Worst Hospital (BBC)

2014: Guild of Food Writers Award: best Programme: Our World Coffee's Cruel Secret (BBC)

2014: Prix Circom Award: Sex Grooming Gangs: The Sikh Code of Silence (BBC)

2012: Emmy Award : Child Sacrifice (BBC)

2012: Human Trafficking Foundation Media Award: Child Sacrifice (BBC)

2011: Human Trafficking Foundation Media Award, 'They're Dying to Get to Britain' Mail on Sunday

2008: Amnesty International Media Award: Palestinian Child POW's (ITV)

2008: Royal Television Society Award: Best programme: London Bombings: One Year On (ITV)

2007: One World Award, 'Romania's Unwanted Children'(ITV)

2007: Royal Television Society: (Nominee) Television Journalist of the Year (Romania's Unwanted Children ITV)