The outgoing boss of the British Broadcasting Corporation said he was "very proud" of the BBC's journalists, two days after he quit following accusations of bias and the threat of legal action from U.S. President Donald Trump.
"I'm very, very proud of our journalists in this building. They're doing work I think is incredibly important," Tim Davie said on Tuesday, the first time he has spoken publicly since announcing his resignation on Sunday.
"They're doing a wonderful job," he added.
Davie, who has been Director General since 2020, also tried to calm worries over the future of the broadcaster.
"The BBC is going to be thriving, and I support everyone on the team," he said.
The publicly-funded BBC Head of News Deborah Turness, also quit on Sunday, plunging it into its biggest crisis in decades and dominating the front of Britain's newspapers on Tuesday.
Public trust
Analysts say the resignations have exposed deep frictions over governance and editorial standards, raising questions about whether the BBC can maintain public trust.
Legal action
An internal memo by a former BBC adviser accused it of editorial failings on President Donald Trump, the Israel-Hamas war and transgender coverage.
Trump has now threatened legal action for the editing of a speech he made in 2021 on the day his supporters overran the Capitol.
His lawyers said that BBC must retract the "Panorama" documentary by 14 November or face a lawsuit for "no less" than $1 billion, according to a letter sent on Sunday.
BBC apologises
BBC chair Samir Shah apologised for the "error of judgment" in the edit included in a Panorama documentary aired shortly before the November 2024 U.S. presidential election.
In a letter to British lawmakers, Shah also rejected claims of systemic bias, saying surveys showed Britons trusted BBC News more than any other outlet.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the BBC was not "corrupt" or "institutionally biased" and stressed the need for it to maintain high standards.
The programme - produced by a third party - spliced together remarks delivered nearly an hour apart, omitting Trump's call for peaceful protest, creating the impression he urged violence.
The BBC, founded in 1922 and funded largely by a licence fee paid by all TV-owning households, is now without a permanent leader as it faces a review of its funding model.
The current 10-year charter expires in 2027. This is the Royal charter that is a constitutional document that guarentees the BBC's independence from the government.
Ukrainian drone strikes have hit two Yandex data centres in Russia on consecutive days, disrupting digital services as Kyiv intensifies attacks on ...
The U.S. has imposed sanctions on the International Criminal Court (ICC) on Friday (9 October) escalating ...
Uzbekistan has unveiled plans to deepen economic ties with Central Asia and Azerbaijan, proposing shared artificial intelligence infrastructure, a ...
Leaders of countries from the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) have agreed to hold coordinated population censuses around 2030. They took the decision at the CIS Council of Heads of State meeting in Awaza, Turkmenistan on Friday, media reported.
The Saudi-led coalition says it has carried out a series of military operations against Houthi targets in Yemen after attacks on two Saudi airports left three people dead and dozens injured.
Azerbaijan and the five Central Asian states have signed two key documents at the 8th Consultative Meeting of Heads of State in Turkmenbashi, formalising a broader framework for regional cooperation in transport, trade, energy, digitalisation and security.
It started with classrooms. Too many students, not enough teachers, deteriorating buildings and growing anxiety over what comes after high school. But within weeks, a movement that began outside French lycées had spread across the country.
Britain and Israel have reached a temporary compromise over the future of the British Consulate General in East Jerusalem, easing a diplomatic dispute that had threatened to further strain relations between the two countries.
Ukrainian drone strikes have hit two Yandex data centres in Russia on consecutive days, disrupting digital services as Kyiv intensifies attacks on Russia's digital infrastructure.
The U.S. has imposed sanctions on the International Criminal Court (ICC) on Friday (9 October) escalating tensions with European allies and potentially targeting companies that provide services to the tribunal. The move came hours after former ICC judge Navi Pillay won the Nobel Peace Prize.
Azerbaijan has made history at the 2026 World Judo Championships in Baku, claiming a record five medals and climbing to second place in the standings behind Japan as more than 620 athletes from over 90 countries compete in the Azerbaijani capital.
Student protests are gaining momentum across France over worsening school conditions, as online calls for nationwide demonstrations on 17 October raise the prospect of wider unrest.
Riot police used water cannon and tear gas to disperse protesters in Brussels on Friday, 9 October, as students joined workers in a nationwide strike against government austerity measures and spending cuts.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment