The former US president's official spokesperson has characterized the BBC as "completely fake news" and a "propaganda machine" in a forthright discussion. These remarks follow claims of bias at the network.
White House Official Condemns BBC Coverage
Karoline Leavitt, a high-ranking figure in the previous US government, remarked that watching BBC bulletins during visits to the UK "spoils" her day. She asserted that taxpayers are "compelled to foot the bill for a liberal propaganda machine."
Dispute Over Altered Speech
Leavitt's comments came 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 report leaked to a newspaper suggested that an installment of the news programme "thoroughly deceived" audiences by combining two segments of the speech together.
The broadcast showed the leader saying he would walk with his followers to the Capitol prior to the riots on January 6th, urging them to "struggle intensely". However, it excluded a portion of the talk 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.”
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 Memo Emphasizes Production Problems
The newspaper said its reporting was based on a memo authored by a former adviser to the BBC's editorial guidelines committee. The adviser left his position earlier this year and has not commented on the document, understood to have been leaked by a insider.
An extract published stated: ""Editing the footage as Panorama broadcast it was utterly deceptive. The absence of a direct call for supporters to march and battle at Capitol Hill partly explained why no federal incitement charges were filed."
Claims of Systemic Issues
The report reportedly added that the ex-consultant had expressed concerns about how BBC Arabic reported on the war in Gaza.
The newspaper said the adviser asserted there were "systemic problems", which had not been addressed by senior management. He reportedly cited "stark differences" between the coverage of the hostilities 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.
Criticism of Trans Issues Coverage
The 19-page dossier is also said to have criticised 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 reported to have alleged that stories posing complex questions about transgender matters were downplayed, with a "constant drip-feed of biased stories celebrating the trans experience without adequate fairness or objectivity".
BBC Reply
In answer, the BBC stated: "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."
