The former US president's official spokesperson has described the BBC as "completely fake news" and a "biased media outlet" in a blunt discussion. This comes claims of partiality at the broadcaster.
White House Official Criticizes BBC Reporting
The White House official, a high-ranking figure in the Trump administration, remarked that viewing BBC bulletins during visits to the UK "ruins" her day. She asserted that the public are "compelled to foot the bill for a leftist propaganda machine."
Dispute Over Altered Address
The spokesperson's statements came after lawmakers said the broadcaster had "serious questions to answer" regarding how a public address by the US president was modified in a BBC Panorama program.
A document leaked to a newspaper suggested that an installment of the news programme "thoroughly deceived" audiences by combining two parts of the oration together.
The broadcast showed the leader saying he would march with his followers to the Capitol prior to the riots on 6 January 2021, urging them to "fight like hell". However, it excluded a portion of the speech where he advised the crowd "to express views calmly and loyally".
“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 continued: "Whenever I journey to the United Kingdom with President Trump and am obliged to watch the BBC in our hotel rooms, it mars my day listening to their blatant 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."
Disclosed Document Emphasizes Production Problems
The publication said its reporting was based on a memo authored by a ex- adviser to the BBC's editorial guidelines board. The adviser left his role recently and has not commented on the file, believed to have been leaked by a whistleblower.
A passage released read: "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 Issues
The memo allegedly added that the ex-consultant had raised concerns about how BBC Arabic reported on the conflict in Gaza.
The newspaper claimed the author alleged there were "institutional issues", which had not been resolved by senior management. He supposedly cited "stark differences" between the reporting of the hostilities on BBC Arabic and on the main BBC site.
One matter pointed out was the repeated use of commentators who were antisemitic or supportive of the militant group.
Censure of Trans Topics Coverage
The 19-page dossier is also said to have faulted the BBC's handling of gender identity matters, stating the network had been "influenced by a small group of [staff] promoting the Stonewall view" of gender identity issues and that its LGBT unit would "refuse to cover any stories raising difficult questions".
It is reported to have alleged that stories raising complex questions about transgender matters were downplayed, with a "constant drip-feed of one-sided stories promoting the trans experience without adequate balance or objectivity".
The Broadcaster Response
In answer, 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.|He previously advised a panel where varied perspectives on our reporting are regularly examined and contested."
