BBC Director-General and News Chief Resign Over Edit of Trump Speech

The BBC’s director-general, Tim Davie, and the chief executive of BBC News, Deborah Turness, announced on Sunday that they are stepping down after a controversy over how the broadcaster edited a speech by President Trump in a documentary. Davie said in a letter to staff that quitting is “entirely my decision,” and that “there have been some mistakes made and as director-general I have to take ultimate responsibility,” NBC News reported. Al Jazeera also reported Davie’s words, noting that he was leaving after five years in the job.

The documentary was an episode of the BBC’s “Panorama” series broadcast shortly before the 2024 U.S. presidential election. NBC News and Al Jazeera reported that it spliced together two sections of Trump’s speech before the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol. Critics said the edit was misleading because it left out a part in which Trump told supporters he wanted them to demonstrate peacefully, according to NBC, CBS News and Al Jazeera.

The pressure grew after the Daily Telegraph published parts of a dossier written by Michael Prescott, whom the BBC had hired to advise it on standards and guidelines, NBC and CBS reported. The dossier highlighted the speech edit and raised other concerns about the broadcaster’s output, the outlets reported.

Turness said the controversy “has reached a stage where it is causing damage to the BBC,” NBC reported, and told staff “the buck stops with me,” according to CBS and Al Jazeera. She rejected claims that BBC News is institutionally biased, saying they “are wrong.” Turness previously led NBC News and NBC International, NBC reported.

Trump reacted on Truth Social, thanking the Telegraph for “exposing these Corrupt ‘Journalists,’” according to CBS. NBC and Al Jazeera reported that he called the BBC executives “very dishonest people.” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt called the BBC “100 percent fake news,” according to NBC and Al Jazeera.

On Monday, BBC Chairman Samir Shah apologized for what he called an “error of judgement” over the edit, NBC and Al Jazeera reported. NBC also reported that Trump’s lawyers told it he would seek $1 billion from the BBC, alleging the broadcaster defamed him. The BBC said it would “respond directly in due course.”

NBC noted that the BBC’s Royal Charter expires at the end of 2027.