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The director general of the BBC Tim Davie has quit following criticism of a BBC Panorama documentary which was found to have misled viewers by editing two parts of a speech by Donald Trump. The corporation's chief executive of news, Deborah Turness, has also resigned. The inconsistencies in the editing came to light earlier this week when The Telegraph published details of an internal BBC memo which suggested the documentary edited two parts of Trump's speech to make it look like he was actively encouraging the US Capitol riots in January 2021. The BBC is now expected to apologise for the mistake on Monday (November 10) following concerns about impartiality relating to the documentary Trump: A Second Chance?, which was shown a week before the 2024 US election. Concerns stemmed from clips in the documentary which were edited together to make it seem as though Trump told supporters he was going to walk with them to the US Capitol to "fight like hell". Mr Davie's shock departure follows other separate BBC controversies in recent months, including of its Glastonbury coverage. Mr Davie had held the role most recently since 2020 but that was his second period as director general, he had served as the acting director general between November 2012 and April 2013. The Commons culture, media and sport select committee has given the BBC a deadline of Monday to respond to the claims made by Michael Prescott, a former independent external adviser to its editorial guidelines and standards committee that the BBC suffers from bias. In Mr Davie's parting message to staff he said he took "ultimate responsibility" for mistakes, adding that like with all public organisations the BBC isn't perfect. He added: "We must always be open, transparent and accountable." The BBC said Davie sent a statement to staff which said: "I wanted to let you know that I have decided to leave the BBC after 20 years. "This is entirely my decision, and I remain very thankful to the chair and board for their unswerving and unanimous support throughout my entire tenure, including during recent days. "I am working through exact timings with the board to allow for an orderly transition to a successor over the coming months. "I have been reflecting on the very intense personal and professional demands of managing this role over many years in these febrile times, combined with the fact that I want to give a successor time to help shape the charter plans they will be delivering. "In these increasingly polarised times, the BBC is of unique value and speaks to the very best of us. "It helps make the UK a special place; overwhelmingly kind, tolerant and curious. "Like all public organisations, the BBC is not perfect, and we must always be open, transparent and accountable. "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." On Sunday morning, Culture secretary Lisa Nandy admitted the allegations in relation to the Panorama programme were "very serious", but added that she was confident they were being treated with the "seriousness that this demands". Ms Nandy said: "There are a series of very serious allegations made, the most serious of which is that there is systemic bias in the way that difficult issues are reported at the BBC. For our free daily briefing on the biggest issues facing the nation, sign up to the Wales Matters newsletter here "I have complete confidence that both Samir Shah, the chair of the BBC, and Tim Davie are treating this with the seriousness that this demands." Since The Telegraph reported on the memo on Tuesday, the Culture, Media and Sport Committee demanded information from Samir Shah, the chair of the BBC, and asked him what actions would be taken to address the concerns. BBC chairman Samir Shah said: "This is a sad day for the BBC. Tim has been an outstanding director-general for the last five years. He has propelled the BBC forward with determination, single-mindedness and foresight. "He has had the full support of me and the Board throughout. 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. "Tim has given 20 years of his life to the BBC. "He is a devoted and inspirational leader and an absolute believer in the BBC and public service broadcasting. He has achieved a great deal. "Foremost, under his tenure, the transformation of the BBC to meet the challenges in a world of unprecedented change and competition is well under way."
