The former US president's press secretary has characterized the BBC as "completely fake news" and a "propaganda machine" in a forthright interview. These remarks follow allegations of bias at the broadcaster.
Senior Administration Figure Condemns BBC Coverage
Karoline Leavitt, a senior representative in the Trump administration, stated that watching BBC bulletins during trips to the UK "spoils" her day. She asserted that taxpayers are "forced to foot the bill for a leftist propaganda machine."
Controversy Over Edited Address
The spokesperson's statements emerged after lawmakers said the broadcaster had "significant concerns to answer" regarding how a public address by the American leader was edited in a BBC Panorama program.
A document leaked to a newspaper suggested that an installment of the news programme "completely misled" viewers by combining two parts of the speech together.
The programme showed the president saying he would march 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 talk 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 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 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 Document Emphasizes Editing Issues
The publication reported its coverage was based on a memo written by a former consultant to the BBC's content standards committee. The expert left his position earlier this year and has not commented on the file, understood to have been revealed by a insider.
An extract released 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 added that the former adviser had raised worries about how BBC Arabic covered the war in Gaza.
The outlet said the author alleged there were "systemic problems", which had not been addressed by senior management. He supposedly cited "clear disparities" between the reporting of the hostilities on BBC Arabic and on the primary BBC website.
One matter highlighted was the frequent use of analysts who were prejudiced against Jewish people or supportive of the militant group.
Censure of Transgender Issues Reporting
The 19-page dossier is also said to have criticised the BBC's handling of transgender issues, saying 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 reported to have claimed that stories raising complex questions about trans issues were suppressed, with a "steady stream of biased stories celebrating 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."
"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."
