Donald Trump's official spokesperson has described the BBC as "100% fake news" and a "propaganda machine" in a forthright discussion. This comes allegations of partiality at the network.
Senior Administration Figure Condemns BBC Coverage
The White House official, a senior figure in the previous US government, stated that viewing BBC news reports during visits to the UK "ruins" her day. She asserted that taxpayers are "compelled to foot the bill for a liberal propaganda machine."
Dispute Over Edited Address
Leavitt's statements emerged 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 documentary.
A report leaked to a publication suggested that an installment of the current affairs programme "completely misled" audiences by combining two parts of the speech together.
The programme showed the leader saying he would march with his followers to the Capitol ahead of the disturbances on 6 January 2021, urging them to "struggle intensely". Nevertheless, it excluded a portion of the speech where he urged the crowd "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.”
The press secretary 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 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 Document Highlights Editing Issues
The newspaper said its reporting was based on a note authored by a former adviser to the BBC's content standards committee. The expert left his position recently and has not spoken on the file, understood to have been leaked by a whistleblower.
An extract released 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 Problems
The memo reportedly added that the ex-consultant had expressed concerns about how BBC Arabic covered the conflict in Gaza.
The outlet said the author asserted there were "institutional issues", which had not been addressed by top executives. He reportedly cited "stark differences" between the reporting of the war on BBC Arabic and on the primary BBC site.
One matter highlighted was the frequent use of commentators who were prejudiced against Jewish people or pro-Hamas.
Censure of Transgender Topics Reporting
The 19-page dossier is also said to have criticised the BBC's coverage of transgender issues, saying 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 "refuse to cover any stories raising difficult questions".
It is said to have alleged that stories raising challenging questions about trans issues were suppressed, with a "constant drip-feed of one-sided stories promoting the trans experience without adequate balance or impartiality".
BBC 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."
"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."
