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LONDON – On Monday, key figures from the BBC, including its chairman and senior executives, are set to be grilled by lawmakers over the organization’s editorial practices. This scrutiny comes in the wake of U.S. President Donald Trump’s threat to launch a billion-dollar lawsuit against the broadcaster for allegedly misleading editing in one of its documentaries.
Samir Shah, the chairman of the BBC, along with board member Robbie Gibb and former editorial adviser Michael Prescott, will appear before the Culture, Media and Sport Committee of Parliament. They will be questioned regarding the standards and practices of the BBC’s editorial decisions.
This comes as the BBC faces internal turmoil, following the recent resignations of its director general and head of news. The crisis was further exacerbated by President Trump’s claim that he might sue over an edited segment of a BBC documentary, which aired just days before the 2024 U.S. presidential election.
The documentary in question, titled “Trump: A Second Chance?”, was produced by an external company. It controversially edited three separate quotes from Trump’s January 6, 2021, speech, making them appear as a single statement in which Trump seemingly encouraged his followers to “fight like hell” and march to the Capitol.
This editing decision portrayed Trump as urging his supporters to storm the U.S. Capitol on the day Congress was to certify President Joe Biden’s electoral win. BBC Chairman Shah admitted the documentary might have conveyed “the impression of a direct call for violent action,” prompting widespread criticism and legal threats.
The BBC said Shah has sent a letter to the White House saying that he and the corporation were sorry for the edit of the speech.
But the broadcaster said it had not defamed Trump and rejected the basis for his lawsuit threat.
Lawmakers at Monday’s parliamentary session will focus on questions about editorial standards raised by Prescott, a former journalist and and external editorial standards adviser to the BBC.
Prescott was the author of an internal note to BBC bosses that raised concerns about the editing of the Trump speech, as well as other instances of alleged left-leaning “institutional bias” at the BBC including its coverage of Gaza and transgender issues.
The Daily Telegraph newspaper published that note in early November, sparking the latest crisis.
Last week Shumeet Banerji, a BBC board member, also said he was stepping down over “governance issues,” sparking further questions about the corporation’s leadership.
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