Donald Trump's official spokesperson has characterized the BBC as "100% fake news" and a "biased media outlet" in a forthright interview. These remarks follow allegations of bias at the network.
Senior Administration Figure Criticizes BBC Reporting
The White House official, a senior representative in the Trump administration, remarked that viewing BBC news reports during trips to the UK "ruins" her day. She asserted that the public are "forced to foot the bill for a liberal propaganda machine."
Dispute Over Altered Speech
The spokesperson's statements emerged after MPs said the corporation had "significant concerns to answer" regarding how a public address by the American leader was edited in a BBC Panorama documentary.
A report leaked to a newspaper suggested that an installment of the news programme "thoroughly deceived" viewers by splicing two segments of the oration together.
The programme showed the leader saying he would walk with his followers to the Capitol prior to the disturbances on 6 January 2021, urging them to "struggle intensely". Nevertheless, it omitted a section of the speech where he advised the assembly "to peacefully and patriotically make your voices heard".
“This purposefully dishonest, selectively edited clip by the BBC is further evidence that they are total, 100% fake news that should no longer be worth the time on the television screens of the great people of the United Kingdom.”
Leavitt added: "Every time I travel to the United Kingdom with President Trump and am forced to watch the BBC in our hotel rooms, it ruins my day listening to their overt propaganda and lies about the president of the United States and all that he’s doing to make America better and the world a safer place."
Leaked Memo Emphasizes Editing Problems
The newspaper said its coverage was based on a memo authored by a former adviser to the BBC's content standards committee. The adviser departed his position recently and has not commented on the file, understood to have been revealed by a whistleblower.
A passage published stated: "It was completely misleading to edit the clip in the way Panorama aired it. The fact that he did not explicitly exhort supporters to go down and fight at Capitol Hill was one of the reasons there were no federal charges for incitement to riot."
Claims of Widespread Issues
The memo allegedly added that the ex-consultant had expressed concerns about how BBC Arabic reported on the war in Gaza.
The newspaper claimed the adviser asserted there were "institutional issues", which had not been resolved by top executives. He supposedly cited "stark differences" between the reporting of the war on BBC Arabic and on the primary BBC website.
One matter highlighted was the frequent use of analysts who were antisemitic or supportive of the militant group.
Censure of Trans Issues Reporting
The lengthy file is also said to have criticised the BBC's coverage of gender identity matters, stating the broadcaster had been "influenced by a small group of [staff] promoting the Stonewall view" of sexual identity issues and that its LGBT desk would "decline to cover any stories raising difficult questions".
It is reported to have claimed that stories posing challenging questions about transgender matters were suppressed, with a "steady stream of biased stories celebrating the trans experience without adequate balance or impartiality".
BBC Response
In answer, the BBC stated: "While we don’t comment on leaked documents, when the BBC receives feedback it takes it seriously and considers it carefully."
"The former adviser is a former adviser to a board committee where differing views and opinions of our coverage are routinely discussed and debated.|The ex-consultant previously advised a panel where varied perspectives on our reporting are regularly examined and contested."
