The new David Beckham Netflix series altered a newspaper story about his alleged affair apparently in an attempt to make it more sympathetic to the star.
An article that appears twice in the four-part documentary series, produced by the former England captain’s own company, has been doctored.
The day after allegations emerged that Beckham had an affair with an assistant, Rebecca Loos, in April 2004, a story headlined “My sister did have an affair with Becks” was published in the Mirror. It began: “David Beckham and his assistant Rebecca Loos did have an affair, her brother claimed.” However, when a photograph of the article appears in the series, Beckham, the first two lines of the headline disappear, leaving “An affair with Becks” — and the opening sentence changes to: “The England captain dismissed the allegation as ludicrous.”
The revelation was published in The Mail on Sunday and raises questions about Netflix’s independence. It is unlikely to face censure as it is based in the Netherlands and does not fall within Ofcom’s jurisdiction.
In 2021, ITV had to edit part of Oprah Winfrey’s interview with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex as it included misleading headlines portraying British press coverage of the couple as racist.
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Paul Bristow, a Tory MP, said: “As the documentary shows, Beckham is clearly a decent man. That makes it all the stranger that Netflix appear to be trying to soften how his life was covered.”
Netflix, Beckham’s management and his production company Studio 99 all declined to comment.
