BBC chairman Samir Shah faced a barrage of questions over the “fake news” crisis over the reporting of the US President and his speech.
The government is not backing Shah to remain in his position after the BBC director general Tim Davie and the chief executive of BBC News Deborah Turness resignations.
Donald Trump’s speech was edited for Panorama and after mounting pressure the director general resigned, and Turness also announced her resignation on Sunday after the BBC was accused of misleading the public.
The US President slammed the BBC for being “dishonest” in the wake of the high-level resignations.
The Veterans Minister Louise Sandher-Jones was asked if the chairman should quit, she told LBC Radio, “That’s a matter for them.
“It’s not for a government minister to opine over that kind of thing.
“What I would say is it has been clear that there have been editorial failings at the BBC that don’t meet the high standards that the public have a right to expect.”
Dame Caroline Dinenage, chair of the Commons culture, media and sport committee said she is waiting for a letter from Shah.
She told BBC Radio, “We are still waiting for their letter, we have no indication what is in it, we have not had a statement from them and that seems a little bit odd.”
Nigel Farage said this is the BBC’s “last chance” the Reform UK leader added, “I don’t want to abolish the BBC, I make that very clear, but we cannot have the BBC being seen to be our main national news broadcaster if it cannot perform in a straightforward, simple, unbiased way.”
Turness said that BBC journalists are “hardworking people” and admitted mistakes happened, she said the “buck stops with me.”
She told reporters, “I would like to say it has been the privilege of my career to serve as the CEO of BBC News and to work with our brilliant team of journalists.
“I stepped down over the weekend because the buck stops with me. But I’d like to make one thing very clear, BBC News is not institutionally biased. That’s why it’s the world’s most trusted news provider.”
President Trump wrote on Truth Social, “The TOP people in the BBC, including TIM DAVIE, the BOSS, are all quitting/FIRED, because they were caught ‘doctoring’ my very good (PERFECT!) speech of January 6th.
The US President thanked The Telegraph who first reported the Panorama documentary had edited two clips.
Trump added, “These are very dishonest people who tried to step on the scales of a Presidential Election. On top of everything else, they are from a Foreign Country, one that many consider our Number One Ally. What a terrible thing for Democracy!”
Trump’s press secretary Karoline Leavitt said, “This purposefully dishonest, selectively edited clip by the BBC is further evidence that they are total, 100% fake news that should no longer be worth the time on the television screens of the great people of the United Kingdom.
“Every time I travel to the United Kingdom with President Trump and am forced to watch the BBC in our hotel rooms it ruins my day listening to their blatant propaganda and lies about the president of the United States and all that he’s doing to make America better and the world a safer place.”
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