Donald Trump's press secretary has characterized the BBC as "100% fake news" and a "biased media outlet" in a forthright interview. These remarks follow claims of partiality at the broadcaster.
White House Official Criticizes BBC Reporting
Karoline Leavitt, a high-ranking representative in the Trump administration, stated that viewing BBC news reports during trips to the UK "spoils" her day. She claimed that taxpayers are "compelled to foot the bill for a liberal propaganda machine."
Dispute Over Altered Address
The spokesperson's comments came after MPs said the corporation had "serious questions to answer" regarding how a speech by the American leader was edited in a BBC Panorama program.
A document leaked to a newspaper indicated that an episode of the current affairs programme "thoroughly deceived" viewers by combining two parts of the speech together.
The broadcast showed the president saying he would walk with his followers to the Capitol ahead of the disturbances on 6 January 2021, urging them to "struggle intensely". However, it excluded a section of the talk where he urged the assembly "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.”
The press secretary added: "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 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 Production Issues
The publication reported its coverage was based on a memo written by a former adviser to the BBC's editorial guidelines committee. The expert departed his position recently and has not spoken on the file, understood to have been leaked by a insider.
A passage released read: ""Editing the footage as Panorama broadcast it was utterly deceptive. The absence of a direct call for supporters to march and battle at Capitol Hill partly explained why no federal incitement charges were filed."
Allegations of Widespread Issues
The report allegedly added that the former adviser had expressed concerns about how BBC Arabic covered the conflict in Gaza.
The newspaper said the adviser alleged there were "institutional issues", 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 site.
One matter highlighted was the frequent use of analysts who were prejudiced against Jewish people or pro-Hamas.
Censure of Transgender Issues Coverage
The lengthy file 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 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 downplayed, with a "steady stream of one-sided stories promoting the trans experience without adequate balance or objectivity".
BBC Reply
In answer, the BBC said: "Although we refrain from discussing disclosed papers, the BBC treats all input earnestly and reviews it thoroughly."
"The former adviser 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."
