Tim Davie has resigned from his position as Director-General of the BBC, a move prompted by criticism surrounding a Panorama documentary accused of misleading viewers through the editing of a speech by former U.S. President Donald Trump.
Deborah Turness, the BBC’s Head of News, has also stepped down from her role amidst the controversy.
Davie, who served in the role for five years, had faced increasing scrutiny over a series of recent controversies.
The Telegraph reported on a leaked internal BBC memo, revealing that the Panorama program allegedly spliced together two separate parts of Trump’s speech, creating the impression that he explicitly encouraged the Capitol Hill riots of January 2021.
Announcing his resignation Sunday evening, Davie stated, “Like all public organizations, the BBC is not perfect, and we must always be open, transparent and accountable.”
He added, “While not being the only reason, the current debate around BBC News has understandably contributed to my decision.”
“Overall the BBC is delivering well, but there have been some mistakes made and as director general I have to take ultimate responsibility.”
During his speech in Washington D.C. on January 6, 2021, Trump stated, “We’re going to walk down to the Capitol, and we’re going to cheer on our brave senators and congressmen and women.”
However, the Panorama edit presented him as saying: “We’re going to walk down to the Capitol… and I’ll be there with you. And we fight. We fight like hell.”
The two sections of the speech that were combined were reportedly separated by over 50 minutes.
The publication of the internal memo drew strong criticism of the BBC, including from the White House, which labeled the corporation as “100% fake news” and a “propaganda machine”.
The resignations precede an expected statement from BBC Chairman Samir Shah to a parliamentary committee on Monday, where he was anticipated to apologize for the editing of the speech.
Commenting on the resignations Sunday, Shah called it a “sad day for the BBC” and affirmed that Davie “had the full support of me and the [BBC] board throughout” his tenure.
He continued: “However, I understand the continued pressure on him, personally and professionally, which has led him to take this decision today. The whole board respects the decision and the reasons for it.”
Turness stated Sunday night that the Panorama controversy had “reached a stage where it is causing damage to the BBC,” adding, “The buck stops with me.”
She said: “In public life leaders need to be fully accountable, and that is why I am stepping down. While mistakes have been made, I want to be absolutely clear recent allegations that BBC News is institutionally biased are wrong.”
Turness has served as CEO of News and Current Affairs for the past three years.
The internal memo published by the Telegraph also highlighted concerns regarding a perceived lack of action to address “systemic problems” of bias within BBC Arabic’s coverage of the Israel-Gaza conflict.
The memo also expressed reservations about the BBC’s reporting on transgender issues.
Separately, on Thursday, the BBC upheld 20 impartiality complaints regarding presenter Martine Croxall’s alteration of a script she read live on the BBC News Channel earlier in the year, which referred to “pregnant people.”
The corporation has also faced criticism in recent months for failing to disclose that the narrator of a documentary about Gaza was the son of a Hamas official.
The BBC’s broadcast of a Glastonbury set featuring punk duo Bob Vylan leading a chant of “death, death to the IDF [Israel Defence Forces]” also violated editorial guidelines regarding harm and offense.
Davie, a 20-year veteran of the corporation, emphasized that “our journalism and quality content continues to be admired as a gold standard” and that the organization was “overwhelmingly kind, tolerant and curious.”
He stated that the timing of his departure – which will involve an “orderly transition” to a successor in the coming months – would allow the next director general to “positively shape” the next Royal Charter.
The Royal Charter outlines the BBC’s funding and regulatory responsibilities and is negotiated with the government. A new charter must be agreed upon before the current one expires at the end of 2027.
Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy thanked Davie, acknowledging that he had “led the BBC through a period of significant change.”
She continued, “The BBC is one of our most important national institutions… Now more than ever, the need for trusted news and high quality programming is essential to our democratic and cultural life, and our place in the world.”
She added that the government would ensure the Charter review “is the catalyst that helps the BBC to adapt to this new era.”
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch stated it was “right” that Davie and Turness had resigned but asserted that there was “a catalogue of serious failures that runs far deeper” that “cannot be swept away with two resignations.”
She continued: “The culture at the BBC has not yet changed. BBC Arabic must be brought under urgent control. The BBC’s US and Middle East coverage needs a full overhaul.”
Badenoch said the BBC “should not expect the public to keep funding it through a compulsory licence fee unless it can finally demonstrate true impartiality.”
Sir Ed Davey, leader of the Liberal Democrats, said the resignations “must be an opportunity for the BBC to turn a new leaf,” adding, “The BBC isn’t perfect, but it remains one of the few institutions standing between our British values and a populist, Trump-style takeover of our politics.”
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage said the departures must mark “the start of wholesale change,” calling on the government to appoint a leader who had “a record of coming in and turning companies and their cultures around.”
The BBC board is responsible for appointing a director general under the terms of its Charter.
Prior to his appointment as the BBC’s 17th director general, replacing Lord Hall in 2020, Davie was the chief of BBC Studios, and before that was a marketing executive at Pepsi and Proctor & Gamble.
Turness previously headed news organizations ITN and NBC News International.
Deborah Turness says “mistakes have been made” but “allegations that BBC News is institutionally biased are wrong”.
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