The former US president's press secretary has described the BBC as "100% fake news" and a "biased media outlet" in a blunt interview. This comes claims of bias at the broadcaster.
White House Official Criticizes BBC Reporting
Karoline Leavitt, a senior figure in the Trump administration, remarked that viewing BBC bulletins during visits to the UK "ruins" her day. She claimed that the public are "compelled to foot the bill for a leftist propaganda machine."
Controversy Over Edited Address
The spokesperson's comments emerged after MPs said the corporation had "serious questions to answer" regarding how a public address by the US president was edited in a BBC Panorama program.
A report leaked to a newspaper suggested that an installment of the news programme "thoroughly deceived" audiences by combining two parts of the speech together.
The broadcast showed the leader saying he would march with his followers to the Capitol ahead of the riots on 6 January 2021, urging them to "fight like hell". Nevertheless, it excluded a portion of the talk where he advised the crowd "to peacefully and patriotically make your voices heard".
“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 continued: "Whenever I travel 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 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 Document Emphasizes Editing Problems
The publication reported its coverage was based on a note written by a ex- adviser to the BBC's content standards board. The adviser left his position earlier this year and has not spoken on the document, believed to have been revealed by a whistleblower.
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 memo reportedly added that the former adviser had expressed concerns about how BBC Arabic reported on the war in Gaza.
The outlet said the author alleged 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 primary BBC website.
One issue pointed out was the frequent use of commentators who were antisemitic or pro-Hamas.
Censure of Trans Issues Reporting
The 19-page dossier is also said to have criticised the BBC's coverage of gender identity matters, stating the network had been "influenced by a small group of [staff] promoting the Stonewall view" of sexual 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 downplayed, with a "steady stream of one-sided stories promoting the trans experience without adequate fairness or impartiality".
BBC Reply
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."
