Huw Edwards arrives at court in London
Professor Tim Luckhurst, a former BBC executive, said there had been "the revelation of a dark side of which his colleagues were not aware" of.
Mr Luckhurst, who began his career as a journalist on BBC Radio 4's flagship Today programme, addressed Huw Edwards' "downfall".
It comes after the Welsh broadcaster admitted to three counts of making indecent images of children in Westminster Magistrates' Court today (Wednesday, July 31).
The veteran presenter was released on bail until a pre-sentencing hearing on September 16. He could face up to 10 years in prison, but the prosecution conceded that a suspended sentence may be appropriate.
The court heard that 377 sexual images were sent to Edwards on WhatsApp between December 2020 and August 2021.
A total of 41 were indecent images of children, including seven category A images with the estimated age of most of the children between 13 and 15 years old. However, one child was aged between seven and nine years old.
In a statement, the BBC said: “The BBC is shocked to hear the details which have emerged in court today.
"There can be no place for such abhorrent behaviour and our thoughts are with all those affected."
Edwards' admission marks his catastrophic fall from grace after starting at BBC Wales 40 years ago and going on to lead the coverage of Queen Elizabeth II's death and election specials.
He was one of the broadcaster's top earners and was suspended last July for separate claims before resigning on health grounds in April. No charges were made in relation to those claims.
Police identified the man who sent Edwards the images as Alex Williams, who is a convicted paedophile.
Speaking in defence of Edwards, lawyer Philip Evans said the broadcaster "did not keep any images, did not send any to anyone else, and did not and has not sought similar images from anywhere else".
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Reflecting on the news, Mr Luckhurst added: "This is a dark side which has emerged, which is clearly a criminal dark side. And the consequences will be very severe.
"But we've seen the downfall of a national figure, and we must recognise that dark side has been responsible for his fall."
"But that dark side was extremely well hidden," Tim concluded.
