**Dec 2, 2025.** Here it is on *YouTube:* [The BBC Censored Me ...](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZHhbbyiVmBc)

From the description:

*Today I have to share something I wish wasn’t true:*

*The BBC has decided to censor the opening lecture of a series they invited me to deliver.*

*They removed the sentence in which I describe Donald Trump as “the most openly corrupt president in American history.”*

*This line was taken out of a lecture they commissioned, reviewed through the full editorial process, and recorded four weeks ago in front of 500 people in the BBC Radio Theatre.*

*I was told the decision came from the highest levels within the BBC.*

*This has happened against my wishes, and I’m deeply troubled by it. Not because people can’t disagree with my words, but because self-censorship driven by fear (Trump is threatening to sue the BBC) should concern all of us.*

*This isn’t about left or right. It’s about the health of our democratic institutions. For decades the Reith Lectures have been one of the BBC’s most important platforms for open debate and free expression. That’s why this really matters.*

*In this video, I explain what happened, why it’s important, and why we should remain calm but clear-eyed about the pressures facing our public institutions.*

*I share this with respect for the many excellent journalists at the BBC. And with the hope that transparency helps strengthen, not weaken, our democratic culture.*

Rutger Bregman: The BBC Censored Me