The former US president's press secretary has characterized the BBC as "100% fake news" and a "biased media outlet" in a forthright discussion. This comes allegations of partiality at the broadcaster.
White House Official Criticizes BBC Coverage
The White House official, a high-ranking representative in the previous US government, stated that viewing BBC bulletins during visits to the UK "ruins" her day. She claimed that the public are "compelled to foot the bill for a leftist propaganda machine."
Controversy Over Edited Speech
Leavitt's statements emerged after lawmakers said the broadcaster had "serious questions to answer" regarding how a speech by the US president was modified in a BBC Panorama documentary.
A report disclosed to a publication indicated that an installment of the news programme "completely misled" viewers by combining two parts of the speech together.
The programme showed the leader saying he would march with his followers to the Capitol prior to the riots on January 6th, urging them to "fight like hell". Nevertheless, it omitted 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.”
The press secretary added: "Every time I journey to the United Kingdom with President Trump and am obliged 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 Emphasizes Production Problems
The newspaper reported its reporting was based on a memo written by a former consultant to the BBC's editorial guidelines committee. The adviser left his position earlier this year and has not commented on the file, believed to have been revealed by a insider.
An extract published 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 Systemic Problems
The report allegedly noted that the former adviser had raised worries about how BBC Arabic covered the conflict in Gaza.
The newspaper claimed the author alleged there were "institutional issues", which had not been addressed by top executives. He reportedly cited "stark differences" between the coverage of the war on BBC Arabic and on the main BBC site.
One matter pointed out was the frequent use of analysts who were prejudiced against Jewish people or supportive of the militant group.
Criticism of Trans Topics Reporting
The lengthy file is also reported to have faulted the BBC's coverage of transgender issues, stating the broadcaster had been "captured by a small group of [staff] promoting the Stonewall view" of gender identity issues and that its LGBT desk would "decline to cover any stories raising difficult questions".
It is said to have alleged that stories raising challenging questions about transgender matters were suppressed, with a "constant drip-feed of one-sided stories promoting the trans experience without adequate fairness or objectivity".
BBC 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.|He previously advised a panel where varied perspectives on our reporting are regularly examined and contested."
