BBC Chairman Samir Shah has apologized for the corporation's delayed response to the controversial editing of a Panorama documentary about US President Donald Trump. In his first appearance before the Culture, Media and Sport Committee on Monday, Shah admitted the BBC was "too slow" to act on concerns about selective editing. The controversy led to resignations of top executives and a threatened multi-billion dollar lawsuit.
The controversy centers on a Panorama episode that aired a week before the US election. The documentary spliced together clips from Trump's January 6, 2021 speech, making it appear he told supporters he would walk to the US Capitol with them to "fight like hell." Staff first flagged the issue internally in May. Shah acknowledged the BBC should have acted sooner.
"Looking back, I think we should have made the decision earlier. [...] I think there is an issue about how quickly we respond, the speed of our response," Shah told MPs. "Why do we not do it quickly enough? Why do we take so much time?"
A Week of Silence
Following reports of a leaked memo highlighting the editing problems, the BBC took nearly a week to issue an apology. Shah defended the delay, saying he needed time to investigate thoroughly and ensure the response was accurate.
"I needed to understand what went wrong and to get the right answer. Getting the right answer is really important," he said. "This is a very, very important error, and I needed to make sure that what I was apologising for was fully sourced and fully right."
BBC board member Caroline Thomsen revealed sharp internal divisions over the response. She told the committee there was "a continuing and sharp difference of opinion" between board members and the director of news. The dispute centered on whether to apologize just for the edit or acknowledge it gave "a misleading impression."
Top Executives Resign
The fallout led to the resignations of Director-General Tim Davie and news chief Deborah Turness. Shah said he spent much time trying to prevent Davie from stepping down.
"I do not think the director-general should have resigned. [...] The board wishes that the director-general had not resigned," Shah told MPs. "He had our full confidence throughout."
The BBC has posted a job advertisement for the Director-General position on its careers website.
The Leaked Memo
Michael Prescott, former external adviser to the BBC's editorial standards committee, also testified Monday. He authored the memo that sparked the crisis after sharing it with government departments and regulators before it leaked to the press.
"I wrote that memo [...] because I am a strong supporter of the BBC," Prescott told the committee. He said he observed "incipient problems" during his three years on the standards committee. The committee did not tackle them properly and they "were getting worse."
Asked if the Panorama edit damaged Trump's reputation, Prescott responded: "Probably not." He added: "I can't think of anything I agree with Donald Trump on."
Legal Threat and Investigation
Trump has threatened to sue the BBC for between one billion and five billion dollars despite the corporation's apology. The US Federal Communications Commission has launched an investigation into the matter.
BBC News reported the broadcaster set out five main arguments in a letter to Trump's legal team, asserting there is no basis for a defamation claim.
Note: This article was created with Artificial Intelligence (AI).
