The BBC has made edits to its flagship Reith lecture series, this year delivered by Trump-hating Dutch author Rutger Bregman. His lectures caused outrage across the pond for their attacks on the US President amid the BBC bias row…
Bregman has taken to X to complain that the BBC has edited out a line his lecture in which he describes Trump as “the most openly corrupt president in American history” in the version uploaded to iPlayer. He “was told the decision came from the highest levels within the BBC”…
According to a source present at the recording of the lecture – delivered to around 500 guests – the BBC has also deleted a section in which Bregman thanked the BBC team for helping him with the text. This runs counter to the BBC’s excuse that “the views expressed are always those of the speaker, not the BBC, and they are discussed and challenged after the lecture.” Trump-critical answers to audience questions have also been edited out. Splice yourself into a mess, splice yourself out of it?
BBC Verify dropped an article last night titled “How X’s new location feature exposed big US politics accounts”, lamenting:
“Dozens of high-engagement accounts on X have been accused of misleading users following the roll-out of a new transparency feature that shows user locations.”
Conveniently, they forget to mention BBC News UK’s own X account also appears to be using a VPN – based in the US. Guido is sure Trump loves the idea of the BBC being based stateside…
X’s new feature – which Nikita Bier, X’s Head of Product, says is “99.99%” accurate – shows that other champions of the Online Safety Act are also internationally mobile: Good Law Project is “based” in the US, while Hope Not Hate’s CEO Nick Lowles is “based” in Ukraine. Do as I say…
BBC journalists are moving on to pastures identical after its Head of News and Director-General were forced to resign over accusations of the corporation’s left-wing bias. They’re now working on a nationwide story to whinge about people flying Union Jacks…
BBC Breakfast and BBC News at One hacks have fired off a mass email to every regional outpost today asking colleagues to find material on council workers being ‘abused’ for taking down flags in their area. Should make for gripping TV…
As Guido reported, Essex Council have already offered support to staff feeling “unsettled” by the very sight of a St George’s flag. Wonder if the BBC will flag that…
A BBC spokesperson said chairman Samir Shah has sent a personal letter to the White House to apologise for the editing of the speech in the Panorama programme, but added: “While the BBC sincerely regrets the manner in which the video clip was edited, we strongly disagree there is a basis for a defamation claim.” Oops…
The BBC has been busy funding its own fan mail. It is commissioning glowing reports about itself…
Four weeks ago, the corporation commissioned consultancy Public First to produce a report titled ‘The Creative Engine’ including a section ‘The BBC: A Catalyst for Growth Across The UK’. Unsurprisingly, the conclusion was flattering:
“The next BBC Charter must also be used to drive growth across the sector. Industry must collaborate on tech investment within a supportive policy environment to nurture UK-owned IP.”
The European Broadcasting Union – to whom the BBC is one of the largest contributors – released its own study in June asking whether public service media “crowds out” commercial online news. The answer, conveniently, was no. It insists that lavishly-funded public broadcasters actually “crowd in” commercial players, boosting revenues and reach for everyone. It goes on to say the BBC’s online news operation “stimulates demand for quality journalism” and “pushes commercial publishers to innovate.”. Worth remembering that the licence fee funding model is now under threat in an expanded charter review thanks to the latest set of scandals…
John Simpson, the BBC’s World Affairs Editor, posted a boast on X this morning about the BBC:
Nowhere in the hysterical pile-on against the BBC in the British press has anyone mentioned that BBC News now has 77 million viewers & listeners in the US and has established itself as the second most trusted news source there.
— John Simpson (@JohnSimpsonNews) November 11, 2025
Guido’s Verify service began examining the claims. No need, Simpson debunked himself…
Within hours he posted an apology:
“It’s apologising season. The audience for BBC output in the US is just over 40 million, not 77 million as I said. That’s the figure for the Americas as a whole. But the BBC is indeed the second most trusted news source in the US.”
The original tweet was seen over 300,000 times. Half-right is good enough for the BBC…
Simpson’s boast about the BBC’s viewership in the US may also be seen as unhelpful seeing as one key point Trump will have to prove is that the miselading Panorama programme was viewable in Florida. D’oh!
Former leader of the SNP in Westminster Ian Blackford told Times Radio why he believes Nicola Sturgeon’s claim that she spent no time in the kitchen and therefore didn’t see any of her husband’s purchases:
“She doesn’t have a passion for cooking.”
