History of BBC Scandals, Their Impact on Leadership
London: The BBC’s senior leader and head of news has resigned amid criticism over how the broadcaster edited US President Donald Trump’s speech before some of his supporters stormed the US Capitol on January 6, 2021.
The scandal that led to Sunday’s resignations is not the first controversy to hit Britain’s publicly-funded broadcaster or topple one of its leaders.
The editorially independent British Broadcasting Corp. was founded in 1922 with the aim of being impartial, acting in the public interest and being open, transparent and accountable. While he is widely respected for his global news activities and the entertainment and sports programs he produces, he is a frequent source of criticism for his reporting and has also fallen prey to off-air scandals.
Let’s take a look at some of the controversies or scandals that forced the dismissal of some BBC leaders:
Jimmy Savile scandal November 2012: George Entwistle resigned as chief executive over a decision not to publish a report alleging that entertainer Jimmy Savile, one of Newsnight’s most popular presenters and who died the previous year, was a serial sexual abuser of young women. The broadcaster also wrongly linked a prominent politician to child sexual abuse. Entwistle remained in office for less than two months after failing to explain errors that damaged public confidence in the BBC.
Boris Johnson’s banker friend April 2023: BBC Director Richard Sharp has resigned following a report saying he failed to disclose a potential conflict of interest over his role in arranging a loan for Prime Minister Boris Johnson more than two years ago. Sharp, a former banker, was appointed to the BBC on government advice weeks after helping arrange the credit limit.
BBC Director-General Tim Davie’s 2021 watch: Davie apologized after a report revealed Martin Bashir used fake bank records to land Princess Diana’s brother a sensational interview in 1995. Davie, who was not at the BBC at the time, made a full and unconditional apology, as well as a written apology to then-Prince Charles and his sons Prince William and Prince Harry.
July 2023: Highest-paid newsreader Huw Edwards has been suspended on full pay over allegations he paid a teenager for explicit photos. He later pleaded guilty and was given a suspended prison sentence after unrelated images of child sexual abuse were found on his phone.
June 2025: The BBC has been condemned for livestreaming a performance by rap punk duo Bob Vylan, who had crowds chanting “death” to the Israeli army at this year’s Glastonbury Festival. The BBC’s complaints unit later found that the broadcast had breached editorial guidelines on harm and crime, although it was cleared of breaching impartiality rules or promoting or promoting crime. Davie apologized, saying he deeply regretted the publication of “such offensive and deplorable behaviour”.
October 2025: Britain’s media regulator sanctioned the BBC over a “materially misleading” documentary about the lives of children in Gaza; because the BBC did not disclose that the young narrator’s father held a position in the Hamas administration.
November 2025: BBC Director General Tim Davie and news chief Deborah Turness resigned after the BBC’s Panorama documentary program misleadingly spliced together parts of Trump’s nearly hour-long speech. This appeared to be a quote from Trump urging his supporters to march with him and “fight like hell”; He omitted the part where the president said he wanted his supporters to demonstrate peacefully.
