The former US president's press secretary has characterized the BBC as "completely fake news" and a "biased media outlet" in a blunt interview. This comes allegations of partiality 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 claimed that taxpayers are "compelled to foot the bill for a leftist propaganda machine."
Dispute Over Edited Address
Leavitt's statements emerged after lawmakers said the corporation had "serious questions to answer" regarding how a speech by the American leader was edited in a BBC Panorama program.
A document leaked to a publication indicated that an installment of the news programme "thoroughly deceived" audiences by combining two segments of the oration together.
The broadcast showed the leader saying he would march with his followers to the Capitol ahead of the riots on January 6th, urging them to "fight like hell". However, it omitted a section of the talk where he advised the assembly "to peacefully and patriotically make your voices heard".
“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.”
The press secretary continued: "Whenever 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 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 Highlights Editing Problems
The publication reported its coverage was based on a note written by a former consultant to the BBC's content standards board. The adviser departed his position earlier this year and has not spoken on the document, understood to have been leaked by a insider.
An extract 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."
Allegations of Systemic Problems
The memo allegedly added that the former adviser had raised concerns about how BBC Arabic covered the war in Gaza.
The newspaper said the author asserted there were "institutional issues", which had not been addressed by top executives. He supposedly cited "stark differences" between the reporting of the hostilities on BBC Arabic and on the primary BBC site.
One matter pointed out was the repeated use of commentators who were prejudiced against Jewish people or pro-Hamas.
Censure of Transgender Issues Coverage
The 19-page file 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 sexual identity issues and that its LGBT unit would "refuse to cover any stories raising difficult questions".
It is reported to have alleged that stories raising challenging questions about trans issues were downplayed, with a "steady stream of biased stories celebrating the trans experience without adequate fairness or impartiality".
The Broadcaster Response
In response, 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.|He previously advised a panel where varied perspectives on our reporting are regularly examined and contested."
