The former US president's official spokesperson has characterized the BBC as "completely fake news" and a "biased media outlet" in a blunt discussion. These remarks follow allegations of partiality at the network.
White House Official Condemns BBC Coverage
The White House official, a high-ranking figure in the Trump administration, stated that viewing BBC news reports during trips to the UK "ruins" her day. She asserted that taxpayers are "compelled to foot the bill for a leftist propaganda machine."
Dispute Over Edited Speech
The spokesperson's statements came 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 disclosed to a publication indicated that an episode of the news programme "completely misled" audiences by combining two parts of the oration together.
The programme depicted the president saying he would march with his supporters to the Capitol prior to the disturbances on January 6th, encouraging them to "struggle intensely". However, it excluded a portion of the talk where he urged 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 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."
Disclosed Memo Highlights Editing Issues
The publication reported its reporting was based on a note authored by a former adviser to the BBC's content standards board. The adviser left his role recently and has not commented on the file, believed to have been leaked by a insider.
A passage 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."
Claims of Systemic Issues
The report reportedly added that the former adviser had expressed concerns about how BBC Arabic reported on the war in Gaza.
The outlet said the adviser asserted there were "institutional issues", which had not been addressed by top executives. He reportedly cited "stark differences" between the coverage of the hostilities on BBC Arabic and on the primary BBC site.
One issue pointed out was the frequent use of analysts who were antisemitic or supportive of the militant group.
Criticism of Transgender Topics Coverage
The lengthy dossier is also reported to have faulted the BBC's handling of transgender issues, saying the network had been "captured 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 alleged that stories posing challenging questions about transgender matters were suppressed, with a "constant drip-feed of one-sided stories promoting the trans experience without adequate fairness or objectivity".
The Broadcaster Reply
In response, 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."
