The former US president's official spokesperson has described the BBC as "100% fake news" and a "biased media outlet" in a blunt interview. This comes claims of partiality at the broadcaster.
Senior Administration Figure Condemns BBC Reporting
The White House official, a high-ranking figure in the Trump administration, remarked that watching BBC news reports during trips to the UK "spoils" her day. She asserted that taxpayers are "forced to foot the bill for a leftist propaganda machine."
Dispute Over Edited Speech
The spokesperson's statements emerged after lawmakers said the corporation had "significant concerns to answer" regarding how a speech by the American leader was modified in a BBC Panorama program.
A document leaked to a newspaper suggested that an episode of the news programme "completely misled" viewers by combining two segments of the speech together.
The broadcast depicted the president saying he would march with his supporters to the Capitol ahead of the disturbances on January 6th, encouraging them to "fight like hell". However, it excluded a portion of the speech where he advised the assembly "to express views calmly and loyally".
“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 added: "Whenever I journey to the United Kingdom with President Trump and am obliged 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 Emphasizes Editing Problems
The publication reported its coverage was based on a note authored by a former adviser to the BBC's editorial guidelines committee. The expert left his position earlier this year and has not spoken on the document, understood to have been leaked by a insider.
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."
Allegations of Systemic Issues
The memo reportedly added that the ex-consultant had raised worries about how BBC Arabic reported on the war in Gaza.
The newspaper said the adviser asserted there were "institutional issues", which had not been addressed by top executives. He reportedly cited "clear disparities" between the reporting of the war on BBC Arabic and on the main BBC site.
One issue highlighted was the frequent use of analysts who were antisemitic or pro-Hamas.
Criticism of Trans Issues Coverage
The 19-page file 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 sexual identity issues and that its LGBT unit would "decline to cover any stories raising difficult questions".
It is reported to have claimed that stories raising complex questions about trans issues were downplayed, with a "constant drip-feed of biased stories celebrating the trans experience without adequate balance 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."
"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."
