Key Points
- BBC Director-General Tim Davie is resigning amid a controversy over a documentary.
- The documentary is accused of misleadingly editing a speech by President Donald Trump.
- The White House and former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson heavily criticized the BBC. The head of BBC News, Deborah Turness, has also resigned.
- Davie’s departure comes at a critical time as the BBC faces a major review of its funding model.
Tim Davie, the Director-General of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), is resigning from his post. His departure comes amid a storm of allegations that the broadcaster misled viewers by editing President Donald Trump’s remarks in a Panorama documentary that aired last year.
The program, which was broadcast in October 2024, showed a speech Trump gave in Washington on January 6, 2021, the day of the riot at the U.S. Capitol. The documentary edited the speech to make it seem like Trump told his supporters to “walk down to the Capitol” and “fight like hell.”
In reality, he had told them to “cheer on our brave senators and congressmen and women.” The “fight like hell” comment was from a completely different part of the speech.
The backlash was severe. Last week, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt called the BBC “100% fake news” and a “leftist propaganda machine.” Former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson also weighed in, writing that Davie should either “come clean” or resign.
In a note to BBC staff on Sunday, Davie said that this latest controversy was a factor in his decision to leave. “While not being the only reason, the current debate around BBC News has understandably contributed to my decision,” he said. The head of BBC News, Deborah Turness, also resigned.
Davie has been with the BBC for 20 years and became Director-General in 2020. He is leaving at a difficult time for the broadcaster, which is under pressure to change its license-fee funding model in the age of streaming. Davie said his decision to step down now “allows a new Director-General to help shape the next Charter,” which will set the BBC’s course from 2027.
The exact date of his departure has not been announced. In his statement, Davie mentioned “these increasingly polarized times” and expressed hope for a “sensible, calm and rational public conversation” about the future of the BBC.
