Ian YoungsCulture reporter
‘Most important job right now is to recruit a DG’: BBC chairman
The chairman of the BBC has said he is “not someone who walks away” after criticism of his handling of the recent crisis over Panorama’s edit of a Donald Trump speech.
Speaking to a committee of MPs, Samir Shah apologised for “the mistakes that have been made and the impact that has had”, but said he intends to “fix it”.
The controversy arose after the publication of an internal memo by former editorial adviser Michael Prescott, who told the MPs that “systemic problems” in BBC News were getting worse, but that he didn’t think the corporation was institutionally biased.
The parliamentary committee also heard from BBC board member Sir Robbie Gibb, who dismissed claims of a politically-motivated “coup” at the top of the corporation as “ridiculous”.
‘Steady the ship’
The outcry over the Prescott memo led to the resignations of director general Tim Davie and head of news Deborah Turness earlier this month, and sparked a fierce debate about the state of the BBC and its journalism.
Beginning his evidence, Shah apologised to “all the people who believe in the BBC and care for it”.
Asked if he was considering his position, he said: “My job now is to steady the ship, put it on even keel.
“I’m not somebody who walks away from a problem. I think my job is to fix it. That’s what I’m doing.”
A job advert for the new director general was published shortly before Monday’s parliamentary hearing began, with Shah saying he’d also like to create a deputy role because the top job is “too big for one person”.
The BBC has faced criticism for failing to do enough to tackle the concerns when Prescott raised them, or to address the row when it was made public after being leaked to the Telegraph.
“Looking back, I think we should have made the decision [to apologise] earlier,” Shah said.
“I think there is an issue about how quickly we respond, the speed of our response.”
He said it took time to investigate the issue properly and agree on an apology, explaining: “It took time to get it right, what the actual apology was for.”
‘Sharp difference of opinion’
Thomson on Trump edit apology: ‘There was a continuing and sharp difference of opinion’
The MPs were told there had been a “continuing and sharp difference of opinion” between some board members and executives over what the apology should say.
The dispute centred around whether the BBC should apologise for giving the impression that Trump had made a “call to violent action”, or simply for not making clear that two sections of the speech had been
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