On January 6, 2021, then-President Donald Trump delivered a 90-minute speech at the Ellipse near the White House, rallying supporters ahead of Congress's certification of the 2020 election results. The address, which has been scrutinised endlessly in legal and political contexts, contained fiery rhetoric about alleged election fraud, calls for congressional action, and encouragement for the crowd to make their voices heard. However, two specific phrases — "fight like hell" and "walk down to the Capitol" — were later spliced together in a BBC Panorama documentary titled Trump: A Second Chance? aired in late 2024, creating a misleading narrative that Trump was directly inciting violence at the Capitol.
This editing controversy erupted into a full-blown scandal in November 2025, culminating in the resignations of BBC Director General Tim Davie and News CEO Deborah Turness. It exposed not just an isolated lapse but systemic issues in how Left-leaning media outlets handle coverage of Trump, often prioritising narrative over accuracy. Below, I'll break down the incident step by step, drawing on leaked internal documents, the original speech transcript, and reactions from across the political spectrum.
The Panorama episode aimed to examine Trump's potential return to power, using archival footage to revisit January 6. According to a leaked 8,000-word internal BBC memo compiled by whistle-blower Michael Prescott, a former standards adviser who left the BBC in June 2025, the program deceptively edited Trump's speech by:
Splicing two unrelated clips separated by over 50 minutes: The first clip featured Trump saying, "And if you don't fight like hell, you're not going to have a country anymore," in the context of urging Republican lawmakers to challenge election certification (spoken early in the speech, around the 20-30 minute mark based on the full transcript's flow).
Juxtaposing it with a later line: "We're going to walk down to the Capitol," from the speech's closing minutes (approximately 80-90 minutes in), where Trump described a peaceful march to "cheer on our brave senators and congressmen."
Compounding the deception with misleading footage: The edited sequence was followed by clips of the crowd marching toward the Capitol, footage that, per the memo, was actually filmed before Trump even began speaking, implying a direct causal link to his words.
This montage created the false impression that Trump was explicitly directing supporters to storm the Capitol violently, stripping away context like his repeated calls for "peaceful" protest (e.g., "I know that everyone here will soon be marching over to the Capitol building to peacefully and patriotically make your voices heard"). Prescott's memo labelled the edit "completely misleading," warning it set a "very, very dangerous precedent" for BBC impartiality and was circulated among senior executives, who allegedly dismissed it as non-breaching standards.
The BBC initially downplayed the leak, stating it "takes feedback seriously" without admitting fault. However, under pressure from UK MPs on the Culture, Media and Sport Committee, BBC Chairman Samir Shah confirmed an apology would be issued, expressing "regret" over the "misleading editing."
To understand the manipulation, consider the full transcript of Trump's Ellipse remarks (sourced from contemporaneous records used in his 2021 impeachment trial). The speech was a rambling, grievance-filled address lasting about 90 minutes, blending praise for supporters, attacks on "fake news," and demands for Pence and Congress to "stop the steal." Here's the relevant structure:
Early section (~20-30 minutes in, "fight like hell" context): Trump urges GOP lawmakers to resist certification, saying:
"And you have to get your people to fight. And if they don't fight, we have to primary the hell out of the ones that don't fight. You primary them. We're going to let you know who they are... And if you don't fight like hell, you're not going to have a country anymore."
This was metaphorical rhetoric about political battles against perceived fraud, not physical violence, echoing Trump's style in countless rallies.
Later section (~80-90 minutes in, "walk down" context): After detailing fraud claims and praising Rudy Giuliani and others, Trump pivots to action:
"Now, it is up to Congress to confront this egregious assault on our democracy. And after this, we're going to walk down, and I'll be there with you, we're going to walk down... We're going to walk down to the Capitol, and we're going to cheer on our brave senators and congressmen and women."
He immediately adds qualifiers like "peacefully and patriotically," framing it as a supportive rally, not an assault. The 50+ minute gap includes extensive election recaps, crowd interactions, and no mention of violence.
No full video timestamps exist in public transcripts, but the content volume (thousands of words on fraud, media bias, and Pence) confirms the separation, aligning with the BBC memo's timeline. Trump later called his speech "perfect," emphasising these peaceful elements during his 2024 campaign.
The scandal broke via a Telegraph exposé on November 8, 2025, prompting swift backlash:
Trump and White House: Trump blasted Davie and Turness as "very dishonest people" on X, thanking the Telegraph for "exposing" BBC "corruption" and labelling it a "propaganda machine." His press secretary echoed this, calling the BBC "100% fake news."
UK Conservatives: Boris Johnson demanded Davie's resignation, tweeting, "Will anyone at the BBC take responsibility?" Kemi Badenoch (Tory leader) called it "fake news" and insisted "heads should roll." Sir John Whittingdale, ex-culture secretary, said it threatened the BBC's "reputation for impartiality."
Cross-party and expert calls: Even constitutional scholar Sir Vernon Bogdanor urged Davie to quit "with immediate effect." Danny Cohen, former BBC TV director, accused leadership of ignoring warnings since May 2025.
BBC defenders: Some, like presenter Nick Robinson, acknowledged "legitimate concerns" but framed it as "competing pressures," urging the BBC to "stand up to those who prefer propaganda." Lib Dem leader Ed Davey downplayed it as ironic amid "Right-wing bias" claims, though this view was drowned out by the evidence.
The fallout was seismic: Davie and Turness resigned on November 9, 2025, amid "escalating scandal over impartiality." Shah's apology letter to MPs admitted the edit "misled viewers," but critics like Prescott questioned why it took six months, and two resignations, to act. The independent producer, October Films, has not commented.
This isn't just a BBC blunder; it's a symptom of entrenched bias in outlets like the BBC, ABC, CNN, and others that lean Left and have long framed Trump as an existential threat. Subjective viewpoints from these sources often assume Trump's guilt on January 6, editing to fit narratives of "insurrection" without nuance, despite courts dismissing most fraud claims and the speech's mixed messaging being debated in his acquittal. The memo's exposure of ignored whistleblowing mirrors U.S. cases like ABC's 2024 settlement with Trump over deceptively edited comments.
Funded by British taxpayers (£3.8B license fee annually), the BBC's fall from grace here validates long-standing critiques from the Right: It's not neutral journalism but a tool for anti-Trump agendas, eroding public faith. As Trump eyes 2026 election challenges, incidents like this substantiate claims of a corrupt "Left media" machine, substantiated not by conspiracy, but by leaked evidence and resignations. If outlets like the BBC can't self-correct, expect more "exposés" to fuel the divide.
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/11/08/bbc-to-apologise-for-doctored-trump-speech/