Copyright standard
The BBC has “serious questions to answer”, a cross-party group of MPs has said, after a former external adviser accused the corporation of bias for selectively editing a speech by Donald Trump. In a memo seen by The Telegraph, former journalist Michael Prescott raised concerns that a BBC Panorama documentary had made Trump “say things he never actually said” by splicing together lines from different parts of his speech, creating the impression he was encouraging the Capitol Hill riots of January 2021. Other sections of the memo reportedly accuse the BBC’s Arabic service of bias in its coverage of the war in Gaza, and claim that some BBC journalists have “censored” reporting on transgender issues to promote a pro-trans agenda. The House of Commons Culture, Media and Sport Committee said it has written to BBC chairman Samir Shah seeking clarification on what action is being taken in response to the concerns raised in the memo. Committee chair Caroline Dinenage said MPs “need to be reassured that those at the very top of the BBC are treating these issues with the seriousness they deserve.” She added that the committee also wants to ensure the BBC is “taking decisive steps to uphold the corporation’s reputation for integrity and public trust.” “The corporation must set the benchmark for accurate and fair reporting, especially in a media landscape where it is all too easy to find news presented in a less than impartial way,” she said. Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy and senior officials in the Department for Culture, Media and Sport have been given a copy of the memo and are examining the issues it raises, Downing Street said. "We take any criticisms of the BBC's editorial standards very seriously and we expect the BBC to consider any feedback that they receive seriously and carefully,” a spokesperson for the prime minister said. Following the release of the memo, calls have been made for an immediate investigation into how the Panorama documentary was approved for broadcast, with critics accusing the corporation of “misleading” viewers. In a clip from the Panorama programme, broadcast before the election, Trump appears to tell supporters: “We’re going to walk down to the Capitol… and I’ll be there with you. And we fight, we fight like hell.” But the words were taken from different sections of his speech, nearly an hour apart. In the original footage, his language is more restrained: “We’re going to cheer on our brave senators and congressmen and women,” adding his supporters will march “peacefully and patriotically” to make their voices heard. Five people, including a police officer, died after a mob of roughly 2,000 Donald Trump supporters stormed the US Capitol on January 6 2021 after he lost the 2020 presidential election to Joe Biden. US senators were meeting in the Capitol to certify the election results when Trump, who was still president at the time, addressed a large crowd of supporters. He urged them to march “peacefully” to the White House, but also made unsubstantiated claims of mass voter fraud and told them to “fight like hell”. Trump was impeached by the House of Representatives for “incitement of insurrection” but was subsequently acquitted by the Senate. Yesterday, The Telegraph reported concerns expressed by BBC staff that the broadcaster’s LGBT desk had been “captured by a small group of people” promoting a pro-trans agenda and “keeping other perspectives off air.” The memo criticises the corporation for producing a “constant drip-feed of one-sided stories celebrating the trans experience without adequate balance or objectivity” and is reflective of culture problems at the BBC, it concludes. Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch described the edits as “absolutely shocking” and warned that “heads will roll” at the BBC, calling for those responsible for releasing the edits to be identified and sacked. Speaking to GB News she said: "The public need to be able to trust our public broadcaster... They should not be telling us things that are not true. "This is a corporation that needs to hold itself to the highest standards, and that means that when we see people doing the wrong thing, they should be punished, they should be sacked." A BBC spokesperson said: “While we don’t comment on leaked documents, when the BBC receives feedback it takes it seriously and considers it carefully. “Michael Prescott is a former adviser to a board committee where differing views and opinions of our coverage are routinely discussed and debated. “With regard to BBC News Arabic, where mistakes have been made or errors have occurred we have acknowledged them at the time and taken action. “We have also previously acknowledged that certain contributors should not have been used and have improved our processes to avoid a repeat of this.”
