The former US president's press secretary has characterized the BBC as "100% fake news" and a "biased media outlet" in a blunt interview. These remarks follow allegations of bias at the network.
White House Official Criticizes BBC Reporting
Karoline Leavitt, a senior representative in the previous US government, stated that watching BBC bulletins during visits to the UK "spoils" her day. She claimed that taxpayers are "forced to foot the bill for a leftist propaganda machine."
Dispute Over Altered Address
Leavitt's comments emerged after lawmakers said the corporation had "significant concerns to answer" regarding how a public address by the US president was edited in a BBC Panorama documentary.
A report leaked to a publication suggested that an episode of the news programme "thoroughly deceived" audiences by splicing two parts of the oration together.
The broadcast showed the president saying he would walk with his supporters to the Capitol ahead of the disturbances on 6 January 2021, urging them to "fight like hell". However, it omitted a portion of the speech where he urged 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 travel to the United Kingdom with President Trump and am forced 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 Highlights Editing Problems
The publication said its coverage was based on a note authored by a former consultant to the BBC's content standards board. The adviser left his role earlier this year and has not spoken on the document, understood to have been leaked by a whistleblower.
A passage published read: ""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 memo reportedly noted that the former adviser had expressed concerns about how BBC Arabic covered the war in Gaza.
The newspaper claimed the adviser asserted there were "systemic problems", which had not been addressed by top executives. He supposedly cited "stark differences" between the coverage of the war on BBC Arabic and on the main BBC website.
One matter pointed out was the repeated use of analysts who were antisemitic or pro-Hamas.
Censure of Transgender Issues Coverage
The 19-page dossier is also reported to have faulted the BBC's coverage of transgender issues, stating the network had been "captured by a small group of [staff] promoting the Stonewall view" of gender identity issues and that its LGBT unit would "refuse to cover any stories raising difficult questions".
It is reported to have alleged that stories posing complex questions about trans issues were suppressed, with a "constant drip-feed of biased stories celebrating the trans experience without adequate balance or impartiality".
BBC Response
In response, the BBC stated: "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."
