The former US president's press secretary has described the BBC as "100% fake news" and a "propaganda machine" in a forthright discussion. This comes allegations of partiality at the broadcaster.
Senior Administration Figure Condemns BBC Reporting
Karoline Leavitt, a high-ranking figure in the previous US government, stated that watching BBC news reports during visits to the UK "ruins" her day. She claimed that the public are "forced to foot the bill for a leftist propaganda machine."
Dispute Over Edited Speech
Leavitt's comments came after lawmakers said the broadcaster had "serious questions to answer" regarding how a public address by the US president was modified in a BBC Panorama program.
A report disclosed to a publication suggested that an installment of the current affairs programme "thoroughly deceived" viewers by splicing two parts of the oration together.
The programme depicted the leader saying he would walk with his followers to the Capitol prior to the riots on January 6th, encouraging them to "fight like hell". However, it excluded a portion of the speech where he advised the crowd "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: "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 Memo Highlights Production Issues
The newspaper said its coverage was based on a note authored by a former adviser to the BBC's editorial guidelines board. The expert departed his position earlier this year and has not commented on the file, believed to have been revealed by a insider.
A passage published 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 Widespread Issues
The report reportedly added that the former adviser had raised concerns about how BBC Arabic reported on the war in Gaza.
The newspaper said the author asserted there were "institutional issues", which had not been addressed by senior management. He reportedly cited "stark differences" between the reporting of the hostilities on BBC Arabic and on the main BBC site.
One matter highlighted was the frequent use of commentators who were antisemitic or supportive of the militant group.
Criticism of Transgender Issues Reporting
The lengthy file is also said to have faulted the BBC's handling of gender identity matters, saying the network had been "captured by a small group of [staff] promoting the Stonewall view" of gender 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 complex questions about trans issues were downplayed, with a "constant drip-feed of biased stories promoting the trans experience without adequate balance or impartiality".
BBC Response
In response, the BBC stated: "Although we refrain from discussing disclosed papers, the BBC treats all input earnestly and reviews it thoroughly."
"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."
