The former US president's press secretary has characterized the BBC as "completely fake news" and a "propaganda machine" in a forthright interview. These remarks follow allegations of bias at the network.
Senior Administration Figure Condemns BBC Coverage
The White House official, a senior representative in the Trump administration, stated that watching BBC news reports during trips to the UK "spoils" her day. She asserted that taxpayers are "compelled to foot the bill for a liberal propaganda machine."
Dispute Over Altered Address
Leavitt's comments came after lawmakers said the corporation had "serious questions to answer" regarding how a speech by the US president was modified in a BBC Panorama documentary.
A document leaked to a publication suggested that an episode of the news programme "completely misled" audiences by combining two segments of the speech together.
The programme depicted the president saying he would march with his supporters to the Capitol prior to the riots on January 6th, urging them to "fight like hell". Nevertheless, it omitted a portion of the talk where he urged 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.”
The press secretary added: "Every time I journey 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 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 Editing Problems
The publication reported its coverage was based on a memo written by a ex- consultant to the BBC's content standards board. The adviser departed his role recently and has not commented on the document, understood to have been leaked by a whistleblower.
An extract released 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 allegedly added that the former adviser had expressed worries about how BBC Arabic covered the war in Gaza.
The outlet said the adviser alleged there were "institutional issues", which had not been addressed by top executives. He supposedly cited "clear disparities" between the coverage of the war on BBC Arabic and on the primary BBC website.
One matter pointed out was the repeated use of commentators who were antisemitic or supportive of the militant group.
Criticism of Transgender Topics Coverage
The lengthy dossier is also reported to have faulted the BBC's handling of transgender issues, saying the broadcaster had been "influenced 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 said to have claimed that stories posing challenging questions about trans issues were suppressed, with a "steady stream of biased stories promoting the trans experience without adequate balance or impartiality".
BBC Reply
In answer, the BBC stated: "While we don’t comment on leaked documents, when the BBC receives feedback it takes it seriously and considers it carefully."
"Michael Prescott 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."
