Peter Hitchens has compared the ‘vast and dogmatic’ BBC to the Soviet Union and begrudgingly called for government intervention as the crisis-hit broadcaster reels from the resignations of its director-general and news chief.
Tim Davie and Deborah Turness resigned on Sunday after a leaked memo revealed that Panorama had spliced together parts of Donald Trump‘s January 6 speech, omitting the section where he urged supporters to protest ‘peacefully and patriotically’.
Speaking to Sarah Vine on the Daily Mail’s Alas Vine & Hitchens podcast, the columnist called for a government-led ‘revolution’ to force the BBC back to the impartiality standards set out in its Royal Charter.
The BBC is ‘the medieval church’, Hitchens argued, wielding such power over public opinion that it requires far greater scrutiny.
Peter Hitchens has compared the ‘vast and dogmatic’ BBC to the Soviet Union
Tim Davie (pictured) and Deborah Turness resigned on Sunday after a leaked memo revealed that Panorama had spliced together parts of Donald Trump’s January 6 speech
The BBC is like ‘the medieval church’, Hitchens argued, wielding such power over public opinion that it requires far greater scrutiny
He said the impartiality obligation should extend beyond news to drama, which is ‘constantly used to push agendas’.
‘I am not a supporter of Donald Trump, but what the BBC did was something which is illegitimate for any journalist’, Hitchens said of the speech edit scandal.
‘They put two pieces of a speech together which were made in different circumstances at different times.
‘They broadcast them at the same time, totally altering their meaning. That, I am afraid, is just unacceptable.
‘It’s unprofessional. No organisation which supposedly prides itself on its allegedly brilliant journalism should countenance it or make excuses for it.
‘This organisation is supposedly dedicated by a Royal Charter and an agreement to impartiality in its coverage of its news – it simply is not.’
The Prescott memo criticised BBC bias over the Trump edit, alleged anti-Israel slant in BBC Arabic’s Gaza coverage, and claims the corporation ‘censored’ transgender debate.
Hitchens reluctantly conceded that only the government has the power to force change, through its ability to renegotiate the BBC’s Royal Charter when it comes up for renewal in 2027.
‘The BBC is like the Soviet Union’, Hitchens declared.
Co-host Vine agreed with Hitchens, reminding listeners that the BBC’s journalistic integrity has been questioned long before the most recent set of impartiality rows
She cited Martin Bashir’s 1995 Panorama interview with Princess Diana, which was obtained using fake documents that falsely convinced her the Royal Family was spying on her
‘It’s so vast and so set in its ways – so completely dominated by dogmas that I don’t think any one person could by themselves sort it out.
‘It needs a revolution – that has to be applied with a great deal of will by the government. It has to be the government because nobody else has the power to negotiate the charter.
‘I think a moment is coming where a body has to turn to the BBC and say: you cannot continue to demand money from the public on the threat of imprisonment if you don’t abide by your charter.’
Co-host Vine agreed with Hitchens, reminding listeners that the BBC’s journalistic integrity has been questioned long before the most recent set of impartiality rows.
She cited Martin Bashir’s 1995 Panorama interview with Princess Diana, which was obtained using fake documents that falsely convinced her the Royal Family was spying on her.
‘The organisation has huge responsibility because a lot of people still trust it’, Vine said.
‘They still think that if the BBC says something, it must be true. They have totally abused that trust.
‘It’s not just recently either – it goes back years and years. If you go back to 1995 and another Panorama documentary – the one where Martin Bashir interviewed Princess Diana.
‘Documents were falsified which led Diana to believe that the British establishment, the Royal family were spying on her.
‘Arguably, one of the reasons Diana very tragically died in that terrible car accident in Paris was because she had dismissed her own security because she was worried they were spying on her.
‘She got that idea from Martin Bashir and the BBC.’
To hear Hitchens and Vine’s full debate about the BBC, search for Alas Vine & Hitchens now, wherever you get your podcasts. New episodes are released every Wednesday.
