Tim Davie was hit by the “weapon” of criticism of the BBC, as he spoke to the staff after his conversion to its general.
Thanking staff for their support, Davie assured them that reporting on the corporate environment “is not just going to be handed over to our enemies” after a week of systemic charges over their reporting.
“I hear everything when it comes to being clear and standing up for our journalism,” he said. “We are in a unique and pressure organization. I see the free press of the pressure. I see the weapon. I think we have a fight for our job.
“I am proud of this organization. There are difficult times, but it does good work. That is the best of any newspaper.
It follows days of criticism of the BBC following criticisms raised in a memo by Michael Prescott, a former independent editorial board and the BBC’s Editorial Committee. He left that role over the summer.
This included an edit of a Donald Trump Spect on Panorama that Davie and others considered a serious violation. Prescott’s allegations were leaked to the Daily Telegraph and reported for a week.
Figures on the right including Boris Johnson, Nigel Farage and Liz Truss used the findings to attack Davie, the BBC’s charge as it is now established.
“Some want to run our essay,” Davie said. “The amazing work locally, globally, that we do is very valuable. We make some mistakes thinking about that and we don’t stop thinking that we have a great job.
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Davie said that mistakes were made and that taking responsibility is part of his decision to leave, as well as the full impact of doing the job. He said he had “some scars on me” from dealing with the various issues that have hit his BBC leadership over the past year.