Donald Trump's press secretary has described the BBC as "completely fake news" and a "propaganda machine" in a forthright discussion. These remarks follow allegations of bias at the network.
White House Official Condemns BBC Coverage
Karoline Leavitt, a senior figure in the Trump administration, stated that viewing BBC news reports during visits to the UK "ruins" her day. She claimed that taxpayers are "compelled to foot the bill for a leftist propaganda machine."
Controversy Over Altered Speech
Leavitt's comments emerged after lawmakers said the corporation had "serious questions to answer" regarding how a speech by the US president was edited in a BBC Panorama program.
A document leaked to a publication suggested that an episode of the news programme "completely misled" viewers by splicing two segments of the oration together.
The programme depicted the leader saying he would walk with his followers to the Capitol prior to the riots on 6 January 2021, encouraging them to "fight like hell". However, it excluded a portion of the talk where he advised the crowd "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 added: "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 Memo Highlights Editing Issues
The newspaper said its coverage was based on a memo written by a former adviser to the BBC's content standards committee. The adviser left his position recently and has not spoken on the file, believed to have been revealed by a insider.
A passage published 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 Issues
The report reportedly added that the ex-consultant had expressed worries about how BBC Arabic covered the war in Gaza.
The newspaper said the author asserted there were "systemic problems", which had not been resolved by top executives. He reportedly cited "stark differences" between the coverage of the hostilities on BBC Arabic and on the primary BBC site.
One issue highlighted was the repeated use of analysts who were antisemitic or supportive of the militant group.
Censure of Transgender Issues Reporting
The lengthy dossier is also reported to have faulted the BBC's handling 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 "decline to cover any stories raising difficult questions".
It is reported to have claimed that stories raising complex questions about transgender matters were downplayed, with a "steady stream of one-sided stories promoting the trans experience without adequate balance or objectivity".
BBC Response
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."
"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."
