Photo: Ansa
Andrea Riccardi
BBC in storm: director, Tim Davie, and managing director of news Deborah Turness have resigned over revelations from a report from the Panorama newsroom in which editing of two speeches by United States President Donald Trump led people to believe that he had encouraged and incited the Capitol Hill insurrection on January 6 2020. The Telegraph newspaper in recent days published an internal memo highlighting that “Panorama, broadcast a week before the US election, had “completely misled” viewers by showing that the president told his supporters that he would go to the Capitol with them to “fight like hell,” when in reality he said he would walk with them “to make your voice heard in a peaceful and patriotic way.”
White House reaction on social networks Above the first he wrote a “shot” at an article published by The Telegraph under the title “Trump goes after BBC ‘fake news'” and (consequently) reported the news of the television broadcaster BBC News announcing the resignation of Tim Davie.
The government described allegations about the way the BBC edited the footage as “extremely serious”. The broadcaster announced that the president, Samir Shah, would brief a parliamentary committee on Monday. And many expected an apology. But it wasn’t enough and resignations were triggered. “Several mistakes have been made and, as director general, I must take full responsibility,” said Tim Davie, in a letter published on the BBC website. “I have decided to step down after twenty years. This is my only decision and I am very grateful to the President and Board of Directors for their unwavering and unanimous support throughout my tenure, including the final days,” added Davie. “I am working closely with the Board of Directors to agree an appropriate time to allow for an orderly transition to the successor in the coming months”, the outgoing director continued, explaining that he had “reflected on the intense personal and professional demands required to manage this role over many years in these difficult times, combined with the fact that I wanted to give the successor time to help determine the news plan he should implement”.
“In these increasingly polarized times, the BBC has unique value and represents the best of us,” continued Davie. “This helps make the UK a special place; incredibly kind, tolerant and curious. Like all public organisations, the BBC is not perfect and we must always be open, transparent and accountable. While not the only reason, it is understandable that the current debate over BBC News contributed to my decision.” This is a watershed moment for British public television. The company is heading into important talks with the government over its future and funding. Now the hunt is on to fill two of the world’s most important roles in mass media.
