The former US president's press secretary has described the BBC as "100% fake news" and a "biased media outlet" in a forthright interview. These remarks follow allegations of partiality at the broadcaster.
Senior Administration Figure Condemns BBC Coverage
Karoline Leavitt, a high-ranking representative in the previous US government, stated that watching BBC news reports during visits to the UK "ruins" her day. She asserted that the public are "compelled to foot the bill for a leftist propaganda machine."
Controversy Over Altered Speech
The spokesperson's comments came after lawmakers said the broadcaster had "serious questions to answer" regarding how a speech by the US president was edited in a BBC Panorama program.
A document disclosed to a publication indicated that an installment of the news programme "thoroughly deceived" audiences by combining two parts of the oration together.
The programme depicted the president saying he would march with his supporters to the Capitol prior to the disturbances on January 6th, encouraging them to "fight like hell". Nevertheless, it excluded a section of the talk where he urged the crowd "to express views calmly and loyally".
“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.”
Leavitt continued: "Every time I travel 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 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."
Disclosed Memo Highlights Production Problems
The publication said its reporting was based on a note authored by a ex- adviser to the BBC's content standards committee. The adviser departed his position earlier this year and has not commented on the document, understood to have been revealed by a whistleblower.
An extract published 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."
Claims of Systemic Issues
The memo allegedly noted that the ex-consultant had expressed worries about how BBC Arabic reported on the war in Gaza.
The newspaper said the author asserted there were "systemic problems", which had not been addressed by senior management. He reportedly cited "clear disparities" between the reporting of the hostilities on BBC Arabic and on the main BBC site.
One issue pointed out was the frequent use of analysts who were prejudiced against Jewish people or supportive of the militant group.
Censure of Transgender Topics Reporting
The 19-page dossier is also said 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 said to have alleged that stories raising complex questions about trans issues were downplayed, with a "steady stream of biased stories celebrating the trans experience without adequate balance or objectivity".
The Broadcaster Response
In response, the BBC said: "Although we refrain from discussing disclosed papers, the BBC treats all input earnestly and reviews it thoroughly."
"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."
