PMA board member Liliane Landor resigns

Last week, the BBC announced that Landor will be stepping down from her role as senior controller of BBC News International Services and director of the BBC World Service.

“Serving as Director of the BBC World Service has been an immense privilege. To have been entrusted with leading a global service relied upon by hundreds of millions worldwide is humbling and the greatest honour of my professional life,” Landor said in a statement.

“With media freedom under threat, the World Service is a force for good and the BBC needs to look after it.”

In a letter to staff Liliane said that while the World Service faced cuts under a difficult financial environment, she was proud of their “refusal to let reduced funding stiffle us”. She praised staff for continuing to deliver exceptional journalism that is “robust, courageous and creative”.

“None of this would have been possible without the dedicated honest work carried out by you all – journalists and support staff across all our services, harnessed to their unwavering commitment to delivering journalism with integrity.”

BBC Director-General Time Davie said: “The whole of the BBC owes Liliane a huge debt of gratitude. She is an exceptional journalist and editor. The BBC World Service is one of the jewels in the BBC’s crown, and has flourished under her leadership.

“I’m extremely sorry Liliane has decided to leave us, and wish her the very best for the future.”

Liliane Landor joined the Public Media Alliance (PMA) board in the same year that she rejoined the BBC in 2021, after a role as Head of Foreign News at the UK’s Channel 4. She spent much of her career at the BBC before then, managing, presenting and editing key areas of the World Service before becoming Controller of Languages, responsible for all non-English language services.

Liliane also founded the BBC’s staff network, Global Women in News, which remains high-profile and active, and launched the popular 100 Women project in 2014, being named on the list herself in 2016.

PMA CEO Kristian Porter said: “It saddens me to see Liliane go, but I’m incredibly grateful for the time and advice Liliane has given to PMA. Her extraordinary insight and experience have been invaluable in guiding our work, and I wish her every success in the future”.