(MENAFN) BBC Director General Tim Davie stepped down Sunday following explosive allegations that a documentary deliberately manipulated footage of US President Donald Trump's remarks to misrepresent his words.

Deborah Turness, the broadcaster's head of news, also tendered her resignation in connection with the same controversy.

Davie, who steered the organization for half a decade, had been under mounting scrutiny amid a string of editorial failures and claims of political slant.

The controversy erupted after The Telegraph obtained and released a confidential BBC internal document revealing that the Panorama program spliced together separate segments of Trump's address, creating the false impression he directly incited the January 2021 Capitol Hill violence.

In his departure statement, Davie acknowledged: "Like all public organisations, the BBC is not perfect, and we must always be open, transparent and accountable."

He noted that while multiple factors influenced his choice, the ongoing controversy surrounding BBC News "has understandably contributed to my decision."

"Overall the BBC is delivering well, but there have been some mistakes made and as director general I have to take ultimate responsibility," he added.

During his January 6, 2021 Washington, DC address, Trump stated: "We're going to walk down to the Capitol, and we're going to cheer on our brave senators and congressmen and women."

The BBC documentary version, however, presented him declaring: "We're going to walk down to the Capitol... and I'll be there with you. And we fight. We fight like hell."

The broadcaster's own reporting confirmed the spliced segments originated from portions of the speech separated by over 50 minutes.

President Donald Trump's press secretary condemned the BBC as a "leftist propaganda machine" and "100% fake news."

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