π Share this article BBC Resignations Described as Inside 'Coup' by Former Media Executive The latest departures of the BBC's chief executive and its news chief over allegations of bias have been characterized as an internal "takeover" by a ex media executive. David Yelland, who previously edited the Sun newspaper from 1998 to 2003, stated during a radio program that the departures of Tim Davie and Deborah Turness followed systematic undermining by individuals close to the BBC board over an prolonged timeframe. "It constituted a coup, and worse than that, it represented an inside job. There were individuals within the organization, extremely connected to the leadership ... on the governing body, who have methodically undermined Tim Davie and his senior team over a duration of [time] and this has been continuing for a long time. What transpired yesterday didn't just happen in vacuum," Yelland remarked. Governance Breakdown Highlighted "What has occurred here is there existed a breakdown of leadership. I don't blame the chairman [Samir Shah] as an person, but the role of the chair of any institution, a corporation β encompassing the BBC β is to keep their CEO, their senior executive, in role or terminate them. And that has failed to happen, because Tim Davie hadn't been fired. He stepped down and so there was, that represents the essence of, a failure of governance." Background of Recent Controversy The resignations on Sunday followed period of attacks from the U.S. administration and rightwing pundits in the UK that were prompted by allegations reported by the Daily Telegraph. The newspaper reported a unauthorized account of the findings of a former outside consultant to its editorial guidelines committee, Michael Prescott, who departed his role during the summer. He had questioned the modification of a speech by Donald Trump in an edition of Panorama, which he asserted made it appear that Trump had supported the US Capitol incident. Two sections of the speech that were spliced together were delivered an hour apart, and the modification did not note that Trump had also said he wanted his supporters to protest non-violently. Inside Responses and Outside Perspectives Yelland's comments mirror a mood of concern described by sources within BBC News on Sunday night, with one saying: "It seems like a coup. This is the result of a effort by partisan opponents of the BBC." Others, including Sky's previous policy correspondent Adam Boulton, have stated the overall impression that Trump egged on the insurrection was fundamentally accurate. It is common procedure to edit together segments of a long address to properly summarize it. Handover Plans and Organizational Impact Davie stated his exit would wouldn't be instant and that he was "managing" scheduling to ensure an "smooth handover" over the coming months. Turness commented dispute around the Panorama modification had "reached a stage where it is causing harm to the BBC β an institution that I value." On Monday, the BBC journalist Nick Robinson stated there had been paralysis at the top of the BBC because, while its experienced journalists desired to express regret for the editing error β but maintain there was "no plan to deceive" the audience β the government-selected directors preferred to go further. Governmental Reaction and Wider Context Shah is anticipated to apologize on Monday to the Commons' culture, media and sport committee, and to provide additional details on the Panorama episode in his reply to the panel, which had requested how he would handle the issues. Speaking after the resignations, the government minister Louise Sandher-Jones dismissed suggestions the BBC was institutionally biased. The veterans minister told Sky News: "When you examine the huge spectrum of national issues, local issues, global affairs, that it has to report, I think its content is very trusted. When I converse with people who've got very strongly held views on those, they're continuing using the BBC for a lot of their information, it's shaping their views on this."