Podcast host Joe Rogan criticized the BBC this week following revelations that the network deceptively edited footage of President Donald Trump’s January 6, 2021, speech.
Rogan is calling the scandal evidence of “the deep rot” within mainstream media.
The controversy stems from a BBC “Panorama” documentary that aired recently about Trump’s remarks before the U.S. Capitol protest on January 6, 2021.
The program has drawn widespread backlash after viewers discovered that editors omitted Trump’s call for supporters to protest “peacefully” and spliced together lines spoken nearly an hour apart, making them appear as a single continuous statement.
Producers also added additional background noise to make the crowd of Trump supporters sound menacing.
Trump’s legal team has since threatened to file a $1 billion lawsuit against the BBC if the “false, defamatory, disparaging, and inflammatory statements” are not immediately retracted.
The fallout has already led to the resignations of BBC News CEO Deborah Turness and Director-General Tim Davie, both of whom stepped down amid the growing controversy.
Rogan Calls It ‘Propaganda, Not Journalism’
Discussing the issue on his popular podcast, Rogan said the edited documentary represented “not journalism, but full-on lying and propaganda.”
“It seems like these people—this is just my opinion—felt justified for completely lying, because it would lead to an ultimate good,” Rogan said.
“So they lost all journalistic integrity.
“And it is the BBC, which is like the height of journalistic integrity.”
Rogan argued that the scandal undermines public confidence in traditional news organizations.
“If that doesn’t show the rot of mainstream, corporate-controlled media, then nothing does. Because that’s pure rot,” he said.
“At the top of the heap, if someone quoted a source and it was the BBC, I’d think, ‘OK, that’s like The Washington Post or The New York Times.’
“It’s a very official source, so I’d assume, ‘This must be real.’”
Rogan said the incident marked a turning point for how audiences view legacy media outlets.
“They turned it into activism, and they turned it into lying — and they did it in front of everyone, where you could clearly just listen to the full speech and know he didn’t say that,” Rogan said.
“That’s not how he said it at all.”
WATCH:
Growing Backlash Over BBC Credibility
The controversy has sparked renewed debate over media ethics and editorial accountability, particularly within publicly funded broadcasters.
Critics argue that the BBC’s editing of Trump’s remarks reflects a broader erosion of trust in major news outlets.
The network has yet to publicly release an unedited version of the footage, though it has issued a brief statement acknowledging “editorial errors” and pledging to “review internal standards.”
The incident follows similar recent controversies involving major Western media organizations accused of selective editing or misrepresentation in politically sensitive coverage.
Trump, for his part, said the BBC documentary was “a deliberate fraud” and accused the network of attempting to “rewrite history” by distorting his remarks about January 6.
The legal demand sent by Trump’s attorneys gives the BBC a limited window to retract or correct the segment before the lawsuit proceeds.
Our comment section is restricted to members of the Slay News community only.
To join, create a free account HERE.
If you are already a member, log in HERE.