The former US president's press secretary has described the BBC as "completely fake news" and a "propaganda machine" in a blunt discussion. This comes claims of partiality at the network.
Senior Administration Figure Condemns BBC Reporting
The White House official, a high-ranking representative in the Trump administration, remarked that viewing BBC bulletins during trips to the UK "ruins" her day. She claimed that taxpayers are "forced to foot the bill for a liberal propaganda machine."
Dispute Over Edited Speech
The spokesperson's statements emerged after MPs 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 publication indicated that an installment of the current affairs programme "thoroughly deceived" viewers by splicing two segments of the speech together.
The broadcast depicted the president saying he would march with his followers to the Capitol ahead of the riots on 6 January 2021, urging them to "fight like hell". Nevertheless, it omitted a portion of the talk where he urged 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.”
Leavitt added: "Whenever 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."
Disclosed Memo Highlights Editing Issues
The publication said its reporting was based on a memo written by a ex- adviser to the BBC's editorial guidelines committee. The adviser departed his position recently and has not spoken on the file, believed 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."
Allegations of Systemic Issues
The memo allegedly noted that the ex-consultant had expressed worries about how BBC Arabic covered the conflict in Gaza.
The outlet said the author alleged there were "institutional issues", which had not been resolved by top executives. He supposedly cited "clear disparities" between the reporting of the hostilities on BBC Arabic and on the main BBC website.
One matter highlighted was the frequent use of commentators who were antisemitic or pro-Hamas.
Criticism of Transgender Issues Reporting
The 19-page dossier is also said to have criticised the BBC's handling of transgender issues, saying the network had been "captured by a small group of [staff] promoting the Stonewall view" of sexual identity issues and that its LGBT unit would "refuse 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 promoting the trans experience without adequate balance or impartiality".
BBC Reply
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."