The former US president's press secretary has described the BBC as "completely fake news" and a "propaganda machine" in a blunt discussion. This comes allegations of bias at the network.
White House Official Criticizes BBC Coverage
Karoline Leavitt, a high-ranking figure in the Trump administration, stated that viewing BBC bulletins during visits to the UK "spoils" her day. She claimed that the public are "compelled to foot the bill for a liberal propaganda machine."
Dispute Over Edited Address
The spokesperson's comments emerged after MPs said the broadcaster had "significant concerns to answer" regarding how a public address by the US president was edited in a BBC Panorama program.
A document leaked to a newspaper suggested that an installment of the news programme "completely misled" viewers by splicing two segments of the speech together.
The broadcast showed the president saying he would march with his followers to the Capitol ahead of the riots on January 6th, encouraging them to "struggle intensely". However, it omitted a section of the talk where he advised the crowd "to peacefully and patriotically make your voices heard".
“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 continued: "Whenever I journey 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 blatant 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 Highlights Production Issues
The newspaper reported its coverage was based on a note written by a ex- adviser to the BBC's content standards committee. The adviser left his role recently and has not spoken on the document, understood to have been revealed by a whistleblower.
A passage released 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 reportedly added that the ex-consultant had raised worries about how BBC Arabic covered the war in Gaza.
The outlet claimed the author asserted there were "institutional issues", which had not been resolved by top executives. He supposedly cited "clear disparities" between the coverage of the war on BBC Arabic and on the primary BBC site.
One issue highlighted was the repeated use of commentators who were antisemitic or pro-Hamas.
Criticism of Transgender Topics Coverage
The lengthy file is also said to have faulted the BBC's coverage of gender identity matters, saying the network had been "captured by a small group of [staff] promoting the Stonewall view" of gender identity issues and that its LGBT desk would "refuse to cover any stories raising difficult questions".
It is said to have claimed that stories posing challenging questions about trans issues were suppressed, with a "steady stream of biased stories celebrating the trans experience without adequate balance or objectivity".
BBC Response
In answer, the BBC said: "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."
