The former US president's official spokesperson has characterized the BBC as "100% fake news" and a "biased media outlet" in a forthright discussion. These remarks follow claims of bias at the broadcaster.
White House Official Condemns BBC Coverage
The White House official, a high-ranking figure in the previous US government, stated that watching BBC news reports during visits to the UK "ruins" her day. She asserted that the public are "compelled to foot the bill for a leftist propaganda machine."
Dispute Over Altered Address
The spokesperson's comments emerged after lawmakers said the broadcaster had "significant concerns to answer" regarding how a public address by the US president was modified in a BBC Panorama documentary.
A document disclosed to a newspaper suggested that an episode of the current affairs programme "thoroughly deceived" audiences by combining two parts of the oration together.
The programme depicted the leader saying he would march 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 speech 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.”
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 ruins 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 Production Problems
The publication reported its coverage was based on a memo authored by a ex- consultant to the BBC's content standards committee. The adviser left his role earlier this year and has not commented on the document, understood to have been leaked by a insider.
An extract 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."
Allegations of Widespread Issues
The report reportedly noted that the former adviser had expressed worries about how BBC Arabic covered the conflict in Gaza.
The outlet said the adviser asserted there were "institutional issues", which had not been addressed by top executives. He supposedly cited "clear disparities" between the reporting of the war on BBC Arabic and on the primary BBC website.
One matter highlighted was the frequent use of commentators who were prejudiced against Jewish people or pro-Hamas.
Censure of Trans Issues Reporting
The lengthy file is also reported to have criticised the BBC's coverage of transgender issues, saying the broadcaster 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 complex questions about transgender matters were suppressed, with a "constant drip-feed of one-sided stories celebrating the trans experience without adequate balance or objectivity".
BBC Response
In answer, 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."
