The head of the Commons media committee has denied writing an article on ConservativeHome that accused the BBC of institutional bias. The article, which remains on the website, was published in November last year.
Background of the Controversy
The BBC faced a crisis that led to the resignations of director general Tim Davie and head of news Deborah Turness after accusations of bias by former external adviser Michael Prescott. Amid the media storm, Caroline Dinenage, Conservative MP and chair of the Commons culture, media and sport committee, wrote an excoriating article on ConservativeHome.
In the article, Dinenage stated that Prescott's claims revealed 'a pattern of institutional bias within BBC News and current affairs' and accused the corporation of 'deep anti-Israel bias'. She wrote that the issue 'runs into the very culture, editorial mindset and assumptions that have shaped the BBC for years'.
Dinenage Denies Authorship
However, Dinenage now says she did not write the article. The BeebWatch podcast, hosted by former BBC Radio 4 presenter Roger Bolton, questioned her about it. Before the episode aired, Dinenage's office contacted the podcast to say that neither she nor her team had written the article, and it did not accurately reflect her views.
Bolton said: 'The article was strong stuff coming from the supposedly independent chair of a committee helping to decide on the BBC's future, so naturally I raised these statements with Ms Dinenage in our interview. We had a vigorous discussion in which she did not question the article's authenticity, and I challenged her suggestion of institutional bias in particular. However, shortly after we had recorded the interview, her office contacted us to say that Caroline Dinenage had not written the article, nor had anyone in her office, and that she did not hold some of the beliefs attributed to her.' The section was cut from the podcast.
ConservativeHome's Response
ConservativeHome said it could not find a record of exactly who sent the article but stood by its publication. 'ConservativeHome cannot now find a record of exactly who sent them an article by Caroline Dinenage in November 2025,' it said. 'However, it was received in the usual manner, subject to our usual processes, and we believe the article to be genuine, sent in good faith, and remains on our website as a record of that day.'
Questions Over Authorship
The dispute highlights the process of drafting opinion pieces for politicians. It is common for such pieces to be written by media officers and approved by the politician. In this case, a misunderstanding may have occurred over whether Dinenage approved the piece. The original author remains unknown.
Bolton added: 'Given this disputed authenticity, we reluctantly decided to edit out that part of the discussion relating to the controversial article. There seem to be only two possibilities. Ms Dinenage or her office did write the article. Someone pretending to be her wrote it. Whatever the truth, it has remained on the ConservativeHome website for several months without anyone apparently noticing. It is still there to be read. Altogether a rum affair.'
