The corporation has published its Annual Report, just 24 hours after a separate investigation into “inappropriate behaviour” by MasterChef presenter Gregg Wallace had upheld more than half of the allegations against him.
On the same day, Ofcom announced it was launching its own investigation into a Gaza documentary that broke BBC editorial guidelines by using the child of a Hamas official as its narrator.
The BBC was unaware this was the case because the independent production company did not pass the information on.
Director-General Tim Davie described the furore around Gaza: How To Survive A Warzone as “the most challenging editorial issue I’ve had to deal with”.
He continued: “The importance of fair balance reporting, the need for high-quality homegrown programming in the face of massive pressure, I think has never, ever been greater. And I believe my leadership and the team I’ve assembled can really help the BBC thrive in that environment and very competitive environment.”
Despite the issues it has faced, public trust in the BBC has increased slightly over the last year.
Several staff members were dismissed after an earlier report into the corporation’s culture found that while the corporation did not have a toxic culture, there was a minority of people who behaved unacceptably and whose behaviour was not addressed.
On Wallace, David said Masterchef was “much bigger than individuals” – but the corporation must “make sure we’re in the right place in terms of the culture of the show”.
The Annual Report revealed a significant increase in digital consumption with with nearly 10% more requests on BBC iPlayer. The platform was the UK’s fastest-growing long-form video-on-demand service in 2024/25. However, the report acknowledges the audience shift away from linear, where PSBs enjoy prominence and where there is less competition to on demand streaming applications.
It also warns of the Big Tech influence, not just over TV, but also smart speaker and in-car entertainment systems that continue to grow. The political climate, says the report, is making regulation challenging while device manufacturers are selling prominence and “self preferencing their [own] services’.
The vast majority of UK homes have a TV Licence – with 23.8 million TV Licences in force, generating an income of £3.8 billion.
