The former US president's press secretary has described the BBC as "100% fake news" and a "propaganda machine" in a blunt discussion. This comes allegations of partiality at the network.
Senior Administration Figure Criticizes BBC Reporting
The White House official, a high-ranking representative in the previous US government, remarked that viewing BBC bulletins during visits to the UK "ruins" her day. She asserted that the public are "forced to foot the bill for a leftist propaganda machine."
Dispute Over Edited Address
The spokesperson's comments came after MPs said the corporation had "significant concerns to answer" regarding how a speech by the American leader was modified in a BBC Panorama documentary.
A report disclosed to a publication indicated that an episode of the news programme "thoroughly deceived" viewers by combining two parts of the oration together.
The broadcast depicted the president saying he would walk with his supporters to the Capitol prior to the disturbances on 6 January 2021, urging them to "fight like hell". Nevertheless, it excluded a section of the talk where he advised the crowd "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.”
Leavitt continued: "Every time I travel to the United Kingdom with President Trump and am forced 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 Problems
The publication said its coverage was based on a memo authored by a ex- adviser to the BBC's content standards board. The expert departed his position recently and has not commented on the file, believed to have been leaked by a insider.
A passage published 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 allegedly noted that the former adviser had raised concerns about how BBC Arabic covered the war in Gaza.
The outlet claimed the author asserted there were "systemic problems", which had not been resolved by top executives. He reportedly cited "stark differences" between the coverage of the war on BBC Arabic and on the main BBC site.
One matter highlighted was the repeated use of commentators who were prejudiced against Jewish people or supportive of the militant group.
Censure of Trans Issues Coverage
The lengthy file is also reported to have criticised the BBC's handling of transgender issues, stating the network had been "captured by a small group of [staff] promoting the Stonewall view" of gender identity issues and that its LGBT desk would "refuse to cover any stories raising difficult questions".
It is said to have claimed that stories raising complex questions about transgender matters were suppressed, with a "steady stream of one-sided stories celebrating the trans experience without adequate balance or objectivity".
BBC Reply
In response, the BBC stated: "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.|The ex-consultant previously advised a panel where varied perspectives on our reporting are regularly examined and contested."
