Nov. 9 (UPI) — President Donald Trump on Sunday rejoiced in the abrupt resignations of the BBC’s director-general Tim Davie and news head Deborah Turness after allegations that one of its program’s misleadingly edited a he made on Jan. 6, 2021.
“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 Jan. 6. Thank you to The Telegraph for exposing these corrupt ‘journalists,'” Trump said on his Truth Social platform.
Davie and Turness are reported to have resigned by the BBC and there has not been evidence to suggest that they were fired.
“These are very dishonest people who tried to step on the scales of a presidential election,” Trump said. “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!”
BBC News published a statement from Davie after his resignation, in which he said he would be working with the public broadcaster’s board to “allow for an orderly transition” to a successor over the coming months.
“Like all public organizations, 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,” Davie said in his statement.
“Overall, the BBC is delivering well, but there have been some mistakes made and as director-general I have to take ultimate responsibility.”
Samir Shah, the chairman of the BBC, called the dual resignations a “sad day” for the broadcaster and thanked Davie and Turness for their “unwavering service and commitment.”
The controversy stems from a report by the British newspaper The Telegraph, which leaked an internal BBC memo in which a former external ethics adviser allegedly suggested that a BBC Panorama documentary cut together parts of Trump’s speech to make it appear as if he explicitly directed the riot at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6.
