Donald Trump's official spokesperson has characterized the BBC as "completely fake news" and a "biased media outlet" in a blunt interview. This comes claims of partiality at the broadcaster.
White House Official Criticizes BBC Coverage
Karoline Leavitt, a high-ranking representative in the previous US government, stated that viewing 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."
Controversy Over Altered Address
Leavitt's comments emerged after MPs 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 document disclosed to a newspaper indicated that an installment of the news programme "thoroughly deceived" audiences by combining two segments of the speech together.
The broadcast depicted the leader saying he would march with his followers to the Capitol prior to the disturbances on 6 January 2021, urging them to "fight like hell". However, it excluded a section of the talk where he advised the crowd "to express views calmly and loyally".
“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.”
Leavitt continued: "Whenever I journey 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 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 Problems
The publication said its reporting was based on a memo written by a former consultant to the BBC's content standards committee. The adviser left his role earlier this year and has not spoken on the document, understood 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."
Claims of Widespread Issues
The report allegedly noted that the former adviser had raised worries about how BBC Arabic reported on the war in Gaza.
The outlet said the author asserted there were "systemic problems", which had not been addressed by top executives. He supposedly cited "clear disparities" between the coverage of the war on BBC Arabic and on the main BBC website.
One matter pointed out was the repeated use of commentators who were antisemitic or supportive of the militant group.
Censure of Transgender Topics Reporting
The lengthy file is also reported to have criticised the BBC's coverage of transgender issues, stating the network had been "influenced by a small group of [staff] promoting the Stonewall view" of sexual identity issues and that its LGBT desk would "decline to cover any stories raising difficult questions".
It is said to have claimed that stories posing complex questions about trans issues were downplayed, with a "steady stream of one-sided stories promoting the trans experience without adequate balance or impartiality".
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.|He previously advised a panel where varied perspectives on our reporting are regularly examined and contested."
