“In these increasingly polarized times, the BBC has unique value and brings out the best in us, helping to make Britain a special place. (…) Like all public organizations, the BBC is not perfect. While this is not the only reason, the current debate around BBC News has understandably contributed to my decision,” BBC director-general Tim Davie said in a statement on Sunday.
The head of the British broadcaster also said that “the BBC is doing well overall, but some mistakes have been made.” “As CEO, I have to take ultimate responsibility,” he stressed.
The head of BBC News, Deborah Turness, said that “the controversy surrounding the program about President Donald Trump has reached such a level that it is damaging the BBC.” – It's my responsibility. “While mistakes have been made, I want to make clear that recent accusations of institutional bias at BBC News are baseless,” she said in a statement.
The article continues below the video
Why did the BBC's director general resign?
How did the BBC edit Donald Trump's statements?
What were the British Minister of Culture's reactions to the situation at the BBC?
What did Tim Davie say about the current debate around the BBC?
The BBC broadcast a controversial documentary about Donald Trump. The management knew about the problem
Earlier, the British “Telegraph” revealed details of an internal BBC memo, which talked about juxtaposing two statements by Donald Trump in such a way that viewers would get the impression that the US president encouraged the riot at the Capitol after losing the presidential election. The email on this matter came from Michael Prescott, a former independent adviser to the BBC's Editorial Standards Committee, who expressed concern about the accuracy of the “Trump: A Second Chance?” clip.
In the document, Donald Trump appears to tell his supporters that he will “march with them to the Capitol and they will fight like hell.” In fact, the Republican politician said: “We will go to the Capitol and encourage our brave senators and congressmen,” and the phrase “fight like hell” appears only later in his speech.
The film was commissioned by the BBC by October Films Ltd. Despite numerous reservations, it was broadcast last year by the British public broadcaster as part of the “Panorama” series, just two weeks before the US presidential elections.
Before the resignations, British Culture Minister Lisa Nandy spoke on the matter and said that the problem was “very serious.” “The most serious accusation is that there is a systemic bias within the BBC in the way it reports difficult issues,” she said.
