The unedited footage featured the audience laughing at Boris Johnson as he talked about “truth”.
Boris Johnson appeared on BBC’s Question Time last week, when he was asked about how important it is for people in power to tell the truth.
As he began to answer the question, the audience laughed at Johnson and the clip was subsequently shared widely on social media.
But when the clip was officially posted by BBC the following day on a lunchtime news bulletin, the laughter was absent from a cut-down version.
The BBC has since apologised for editing the clip, claiming that it was changed for timing reasons and to edit out a repetitious phrase.
“This clip from the BBC’s Question Time special, which was played out in full on the News at Ten on Friday evening and on other outlets, was shortened for timing reasons on Saturday’s lunchtime bulletin, to edit out a repetitious phrase from Boris Johnson,” the BBC said in a statement.
“However, in doing so we also edited out laughter from the audience. Although there was absolutely no intention to mislead, we accept this was a mistake on our part, as it didn’t reflect the full reaction to Boris Johnson’s answer.
“We did not alter the soundtrack or image in any way apart from this edit, contrary to some claims on social media.”
The apology from the BBC comes less than a month after the broadcaster apologised for sharing a clip of Johnson purporting to show him laying a wreath on Remembrance Day this year, when, in fact, it was from 2016.
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