The former US president's press secretary has described the BBC as "completely fake news" and a "biased media outlet" in a forthright interview. These remarks follow allegations of partiality at the network.
Senior Administration Figure Condemns BBC Reporting
Karoline Leavitt, a high-ranking figure in the previous US government, remarked that watching BBC bulletins during visits to the UK "ruins" her day. She asserted that the public are "compelled to foot the bill for a liberal propaganda machine."
Dispute Over Altered Speech
Leavitt's comments emerged after lawmakers said the broadcaster had "significant concerns to answer" regarding how a speech by the US president was edited in a BBC Panorama program.
A report disclosed to a publication suggested that an installment of the current affairs programme "thoroughly deceived" viewers by combining two segments of the oration together.
The broadcast depicted the president saying he would march with his followers to the Capitol prior to the riots on January 6th, encouraging them to "fight like hell". However, it excluded a section of the speech where he advised the assembly "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 continued: "Whenever 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."
Leaked Memo Emphasizes Production Issues
The newspaper said its coverage was based on a memo authored by a former consultant to the BBC's content standards committee. The adviser left his position earlier this year and has not spoken on the document, believed to have been leaked by a insider.
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."
Allegations of Systemic Problems
The report reportedly noted that the former adviser had expressed worries about how BBC Arabic covered the war in Gaza.
The outlet said the adviser asserted there were "institutional issues", which had not been addressed by senior management. He supposedly cited "clear disparities" between the coverage of the hostilities on BBC Arabic and on the main BBC site.
One matter pointed out was the repeated use of commentators who were antisemitic or pro-Hamas.
Criticism of Trans Issues Coverage
The lengthy file is also reported to have criticised the BBC's coverage of transgender issues, 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 alleged that stories raising challenging questions about transgender matters were suppressed, with a "constant drip-feed of one-sided stories celebrating the trans experience without adequate balance or objectivity".
The Broadcaster Reply
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."
"Michael Prescott 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."
