The former US president's official spokesperson has described the BBC as "completely fake news" and a "propaganda machine" in a forthright interview. These remarks follow claims of bias at the broadcaster.
White House Official Criticizes BBC Coverage
The White House official, a senior representative in the previous US government, remarked that viewing BBC bulletins during visits to the UK "ruins" her day. She asserted that the public are "forced to foot the bill for a leftist propaganda machine."
Dispute Over Edited Speech
Leavitt's comments emerged after lawmakers said the broadcaster had "significant concerns to answer" regarding how a public address by the US president was edited in a BBC Panorama documentary.
A report leaked to a newspaper indicated that an episode of the current affairs programme "thoroughly deceived" audiences by splicing two parts of the oration together.
The broadcast depicted the president 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 omitted 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.”
The press secretary continued: "Whenever I travel to the United Kingdom with President Trump and am obliged 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 Emphasizes Production Issues
The publication reported its coverage was based on a memo written by a former consultant to the BBC's editorial guidelines board. The expert left his role earlier this year and has not spoken on the file, understood to have been revealed by a whistleblower.
An extract released 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 Widespread Problems
The memo reportedly added that the ex-consultant had raised concerns about how BBC Arabic reported on the war in Gaza.
The newspaper said the author alleged there were "institutional issues", which had not been resolved by senior management. He supposedly cited "stark differences" between the reporting of the war on BBC Arabic and on the primary BBC website.
One issue pointed out was the repeated use of analysts who were prejudiced against Jewish people or pro-Hamas.
Censure of Transgender Topics Reporting
The 19-page file is also said to have faulted the BBC's coverage of gender identity matters, saying the network had been "influenced 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 said to have alleged that stories raising challenging questions about trans issues were suppressed, with a "steady stream of one-sided stories promoting the trans experience without adequate balance or objectivity".
The Broadcaster Response
In response, 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.|The ex-consultant previously advised a panel where varied perspectives on our reporting are regularly examined and contested."
