Copyright Deadline
Donald Trump and his fans on both sides of the Atlantic claimed victory on Sunday following the news about Tim Davie quitting as BBC director general, but the truth about his bombshell resignation is somewhat more nuanced. A BBC Panorama film’s misleading edit of Trump’s January 6 speech was an error for which the UK broadcaster will apologize, but it was the straw that broke the camel’s back for Davie, rather than being the sole lethal factor in his departure. Despite volcanic fury on social media in recent days, there has been little serious external pressure on Davie to resign. BBC insiders, many of whom are rarely shy of criticizing management, were not talking about Davie being in trouble. What’s more, nobody was expecting BBC News CEO Deborah Turness to also fall on her sword. A changing of the guard at the BBC is a significant moment in the UK, given the corporation’s 100-year association with British cultural life. Director generals do not usually resign because a single program poorly edited a political speech more than a year earlier. Sources close to Davie said doing the job for five years has taken its toll. Recent months have been a particularly bruising period for the BBC amid relentless editorial issues relating to the war in Gaza and a major misconduct scandal on MasterChef. “The level of scrutiny involved in this job is like operating with white noise the whole time,” said one ally of Davie. “He has shown judgment, grit, and energy to take that criticism and public pressure, and navigate a way through it.” In the end, the Trump edit was a crisis too far, and Davie decided that enough was enough — both on a personal level and for the BBC as an organization, for whom he felt his presence was increasingly becoming a distraction. Known as “Tigger Tim” to some, Davie had lost his bounce. His exit statement gestured at this: “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.” Several sources at the BBC made clear that Davie’s resignation was his decision. One person said it came as a shock to the board, with members telling the director general that his departure was not what they wanted. “He has had the full support of me and the board throughout,” said chair Samir Shah. BBC Board Divisions How we got to this point will likely be a matter of interest over the coming days. Two sources said the BBC board has been vexed by the memo that exposed the Trump edit and attacked BBC News reporting on Gaza and transgender rights. Obtained by The Daily Telegraph, the document was penned by Michael Prescott, who was an external adviser to the BBC board’s Editorial Guidelines and Standards Committee until June. He circulated the memo to board members in October, arguing that the “mangled” Trump edit had made the U.S. president “‘say’ things [he] never actually said.” Sources said some BBC board members rowed in behind Prescott’s findings, while others were more skeptical. The cumulative effect of this disagreement was a factor in the BBC failing to get on the front foot and publicly address the Trump mistake and other issues. “There has not been agreement on the handling of this matter,” was how it was delicately characterized by one person. Another individual familiar with events said Turness, the boss of BBC News, has repeatedly made efforts to get the corporation to respond to Prescott’s memo. This person alleged that Turness was blocked from doing so by Shah, the BBC’s chairman. A BBC spokesperson declined to comment on the internal matters. Shah will comment on Prescott’s memo for the first time on Monday. He will write to UK Parliament’s Culture, Media and Sport Committee to admit that the 2024 BBC Panorama film should not have altered Trump’s speech in the way it did. Shah is expected to tell lawmakers that the BBC has reviewed the Trump edit again in light of audience complaints in recent days. He is expected to acknowledge that Panorama could have been clearer that Trump’s speech was changed, but he will say there was no intention to mislead viewers.
