BBC Chair Samir Shah on Monday apologised for an “error of judgment” in editing a speech by U.S. President Donald Trump in a Panorama documentary, following the resignations of BBC’s boss and head of news.
Shah said the BBC acknowledged the Trump speech edit gave a misleading impression and should have been handled more carefully. He noted the issue had been reviewed internally earlier this year, but said the broadcaster should have taken formal action at the time.
“It is absolutely clear the BBC must champion impartiality,” Shah wrote to British lawmakers, adding that the broadcaster is committed to restoring public trust and ensuring its journalism meets the highest standards of fairness.
On the Trump edit he said after further deliberation, the BBC accepted that the way the speech was edited did “give the impression of a direct call for violent action”.
“The BBC would like to apologise for that error of judgment,” he said in the letter.
The Panorama programme, broadcast a week before the U.S. presidential election, spliced together two separate excerpts from one of Trump’s speeches, creating the impression that he was inciting the January 2021 Capitol Hill riot.
The error was included in an internal report by a former standards adviser, which also cited BBC failings in its coverage of the Israel-Hamas war, transgender issues and other subjects.
Mounting criticism of bias at the broadcaster led to the resignation of its Director General Tim Davie and Chief executive of News Deborah Turness on Sunday.
While Shah accepted the criticism of the Trump edit, he hit back at suggestions the BBC had sought to “bury” any of the allegations, or failed to tackle any problems.
It had published corrections when it got things wrong, changed editorial guidance, made leadership changes and taken disciplinary action, he said.
