Donald Trump's press secretary has described the BBC as "100% fake news" and a "propaganda machine" in a blunt discussion. These remarks follow allegations of partiality at the broadcaster.
White House Official Condemns BBC Coverage
Karoline Leavitt, a senior representative in the previous US government, remarked that watching BBC news reports during trips to the UK "spoils" her day. She asserted that the public are "forced to foot the bill for a leftist propaganda machine."
Dispute Over Edited Speech
Leavitt's comments emerged after MPs said the broadcaster had "significant concerns to answer" regarding how a speech by the American leader was modified in a BBC Panorama program.
A report leaked to a publication indicated that an installment of the news programme "completely misled" audiences by splicing two segments of the speech together.
The programme depicted the president saying he would walk with his followers to the Capitol prior to the riots on January 6th, encouraging them to "struggle intensely". However, it omitted a section of the speech where he advised 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 continued: "Every time 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 Document Emphasizes Editing Problems
The newspaper said its coverage was based on a note authored by a former consultant to the BBC's editorial guidelines board. The expert departed his position earlier this year and has not commented on the document, believed to have been revealed by a insider.
A passage 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."
Claims of Widespread Issues
The memo allegedly added that the ex-consultant had raised worries about how BBC Arabic reported on the war in Gaza.
The newspaper claimed the adviser asserted there were "institutional issues", which had not been resolved by top executives. He supposedly cited "stark differences" between the reporting of the hostilities on BBC Arabic and on the primary BBC website.
One issue highlighted was the repeated use of analysts who were antisemitic or pro-Hamas.
Censure of Transgender Issues Reporting
The lengthy dossier is also said to have criticised the BBC's coverage of transgender issues, stating the network had been "captured by a small group of [staff] promoting the Stonewall view" of sexual 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 trans issues were downplayed, with a "steady stream of one-sided stories celebrating the trans experience without adequate balance or impartiality".
The Broadcaster Reply
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.|He previously advised a panel where varied perspectives on our reporting are regularly examined and contested."
