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LONDON — The BBC boss and head of news resigned on Sunday, Nov. 9, following criticism of bias at the British broadcaster, including the way President Donald Trump’s speech was edited.
Pressure mounted on the BBC after an internal report by a former standards adviser was leaked to the Daily Telegraph. The paper cited failures in reporting on the Israel-Hamas war, transgender issues and President Trump’s speech.
The White House recently accused the network of being a “propaganda agency” after it was revealed that its flagship show “Panorama” had edited two parts of President Trump’s speech to make it appear that he encouraged the January 2021 Capitol riot.
Tim Davie, who has led British Broadcasting Corporation since 2020, said he had decided to step down after “considering the very demanding personal and professional demands of managing this role over many years during these frenetic times”.
BBC News CEO Deborah Turness also resigned.
Respected overseas, but questionable reporting judgment remains
The BBC, widely respected around the world, has been accused in recent years of failing to uphold its commitment to impartial news and struggling to navigate a deeply polarized political and social environment.
A leaked internal report says BBC Arabic displayed an anti-Israel bias in its coverage of the Gaza war, with stories raising difficult questions surrounding trans issues suppressed by a small group of staff.
The company, which is funded by license fees paid by all TV-watching households, has come under intense scrutiny from some national newspapers and social media critics who object to its funding model and perceived liberal stance.
In recent years, it has also struggled to contain a scandal over its highest-paid sports presenter Gary Lineker’s views on immigration, which led to the resignation of staff at one point, and punk-rap duo Bob Villain came under fire for singing a chorus against Israeli forces at Glastonbury.
It also canceled a documentary about Gaza earlier this year because it featured the son of a deputy minister in the Hamas-run government.
In the documentary “Panorama,” which aired last year, President Trump told his supporters that they would “walk to the Capitol” and “fight like hell,” and he made this comment in another part of his speech.
In fact, he said, “I support our brave senators, congressmen, and women.”
President Trump’s press secretary, Caroline Levitt, described the BBC as “100% fake news” in an interview published Friday.
Davy News chief denies bias claims
UK Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy thanked Mr Davie for his work as director general and said he had led the broadcaster through a period of major change.
People familiar with the matter said Mr Davie’s decision left the BBC’s board stunned and he would remain in place for the next few months until a replacement could be found.
Mr Davey said the BBC had a unique value in contributing to a healthy society and a thriving creative sector in “these increasingly polarized times” and argued it should be championed, not weaponized.
But he said it wasn’t perfect, and that while recent scandals were not the only reason for his resignation, they were a contributing factor, and that he must ultimately take responsibility.
The BBC must negotiate a new contract with the government in 2027 to secure its financial future, but appeared to be struggling to cope with a string of negative headlines in recent days.
Speaker Sameer Shah was expected to apologize to MPs for the incident on Monday, November 10.
In an email to staff, Mr Turness said that despite the error, “I would like to be clear that recent claims that BBC News is institutionally biased are false.”
(Reporting by Andrew MacAskill, Paul Sandle, Kate Holton and Michael Holden; Editing by Andrew Cawthorn and Bill Berkrot)
