Donald Trump's official spokesperson has described the BBC as "completely fake news" and a "biased media outlet" in a forthright discussion. These remarks follow claims of bias at the broadcaster.
Senior Administration Figure Criticizes BBC Coverage
The White House official, a high-ranking representative in the previous US government, stated that viewing BBC news reports during trips to the UK "ruins" her day. She claimed that taxpayers are "compelled to foot the bill for a liberal propaganda machine."
Dispute Over Altered Speech
Leavitt's statements came after lawmakers said the corporation had "serious questions to answer" regarding how a speech by the US president was edited in a BBC Panorama documentary.
A document leaked to a publication suggested that an installment of the current affairs programme "completely misled" viewers by splicing two segments of the oration together.
The programme depicted the leader saying he would march with his supporters to the Capitol prior to the disturbances on January 6th, urging them to "fight like hell". Nevertheless, it omitted a section of the speech where he advised the crowd "to peacefully and patriotically make your voices heard".
“This intentionally deceptive, carefully cut footage from the BBC further proves they are entirely, 100% fake news, unworthy of airtime on the screens of the UK's admirable citizens.”
The press secretary continued: "Whenever I journey 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 Document Highlights Production Issues
The publication said its reporting was based on a memo authored by a former adviser to the BBC's editorial guidelines committee. The adviser departed his role recently and has not spoken on the file, believed 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."
Allegations of Widespread Problems
The report reportedly noted that the ex-consultant had expressed worries about how BBC Arabic reported on the conflict in Gaza.
The newspaper said the author alleged there were "institutional issues", which had not been addressed by top executives. He reportedly cited "clear disparities" between the coverage of the war on BBC Arabic and on the primary BBC website.
One issue highlighted was the frequent use of analysts who were prejudiced against Jewish people or pro-Hamas.
Censure of Transgender Topics Reporting
The 19-page dossier is also reported to have faulted the BBC's coverage of gender identity matters, saying the broadcaster had been "captured by a small group of [staff] promoting the Stonewall view" of gender identity issues and that its LGBT unit would "decline to cover any stories raising difficult questions".
It is reported to have claimed that stories posing complex questions about transgender matters were suppressed, with a "steady stream of one-sided stories celebrating the trans experience without adequate fairness or impartiality".
BBC Response
In response, the BBC said: "While we don’t comment on leaked documents, when the BBC receives feedback it takes it seriously and considers it carefully."
"Michael Prescott 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."
