The former US president's official spokesperson has characterized the BBC as "100% fake news" and a "propaganda machine" in a forthright discussion. This comes claims of partiality at the network.
Senior Administration Figure Criticizes BBC Coverage
The White House official, a high-ranking representative in the previous US government, remarked that watching BBC bulletins during visits to the UK "ruins" her day. She claimed that taxpayers are "forced 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 speech by the US president was edited in a BBC Panorama program.
A report leaked to a publication indicated that an installment of the current affairs programme "completely misled" viewers by splicing two segments of the oration together.
The programme showed the leader saying he would march with his supporters to the Capitol prior to the disturbances on January 6th, encouraging them to "fight like hell". However, it omitted a portion of the talk where he urged the assembly "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 added: "Whenever 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."
Leaked Document Emphasizes Editing Problems
The newspaper reported its reporting was based on a note authored by a ex- adviser to the BBC's content standards committee. The expert left his position recently and has not spoken on the file, believed to have been leaked by a insider.
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."
Allegations of Systemic Problems
The report reportedly noted that the ex-consultant had raised worries about how BBC Arabic covered the war in Gaza.
The newspaper claimed the adviser asserted there were "institutional issues", which had not been addressed by top executives. He reportedly cited "stark differences" between the coverage of the hostilities on BBC Arabic and on the primary BBC website.
One matter highlighted was the repeated use of analysts who were antisemitic or pro-Hamas.
Censure of Trans Issues Reporting
The 19-page file is also said to have faulted the BBC's coverage of gender identity matters, saying 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 "decline to cover any stories raising difficult questions".
It is said to have claimed that stories posing challenging questions about trans issues were downplayed, with a "constant drip-feed of biased stories celebrating the trans experience without adequate balance 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.|He previously advised a panel where varied perspectives on our reporting are regularly examined and contested."
