Donald Trump's official spokesperson has described the BBC as "100% fake news" and a "biased media outlet" in a forthright interview. These remarks follow allegations of bias at the broadcaster.
White House Official Condemns BBC Reporting
The White House official, a high-ranking figure in the Trump administration, remarked that watching BBC news reports during visits to the UK "ruins" her day. She asserted that taxpayers are "forced to foot the bill for a leftist propaganda machine."
Controversy Over Altered Speech
Leavitt's statements emerged after MPs said the corporation had "significant concerns to answer" regarding how a public address by the American leader was modified in a BBC Panorama program.
A report disclosed to a publication indicated that an installment of the news programme "thoroughly deceived" audiences by combining two segments of the oration together.
The programme showed the leader saying he would march with his followers to the Capitol prior to the riots on 6 January 2021, encouraging them to "fight like hell". Nevertheless, it omitted a section of the talk where he advised the assembly "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: "Whenever 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 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."
Leaked Memo Highlights Editing Issues
The publication reported its coverage was based on a memo written by a ex- consultant to the BBC's editorial guidelines board. The adviser left his position recently and has not commented on the file, understood to have been leaked by a whistleblower.
An extract 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 memo allegedly noted that the former adviser had raised concerns about how BBC Arabic covered the war in Gaza.
The outlet claimed the adviser asserted there were "systemic problems", which had not been resolved by top executives. He supposedly cited "clear disparities" between the coverage of the war on BBC Arabic and on the main BBC site.
One matter highlighted was the frequent use of analysts who were prejudiced against Jewish people or supportive of the militant group.
Criticism of Transgender Issues Coverage
The lengthy dossier is also reported to have faulted the BBC's coverage of gender identity matters, 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 said to have claimed that stories posing challenging questions about trans issues were downplayed, with a "steady stream of biased stories promoting the trans experience without adequate fairness or impartiality".
The Broadcaster Response
In answer, the BBC said: "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."
