Donald Trump's press secretary has described the BBC as "100% fake news" and a "biased media outlet" in a blunt interview. These remarks follow claims of bias at the network.
Senior Administration Figure Criticizes BBC Reporting
The White House official, a high-ranking representative in the previous US government, stated that watching BBC bulletins during trips to the UK "ruins" her day. She asserted that taxpayers are "forced to foot the bill for a liberal propaganda machine."
Controversy Over Altered Speech
Leavitt's comments emerged after lawmakers said the corporation had "significant concerns to answer" regarding how a public address by the US president was edited in a BBC Panorama program.
A document disclosed to a newspaper suggested that an installment of the news programme "completely misled" 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 January 6th, encouraging them to "struggle intensely". Nevertheless, it omitted a section of the talk where he urged the crowd "to peacefully and patriotically make your voices heard".
“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 journey 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 Editing Problems
The publication said its coverage was based on a memo written by a former consultant to the BBC's content standards committee. The adviser left his role recently and has not commented on the file, understood to have been leaked by a whistleblower.
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."
Allegations of Widespread Problems
The report allegedly added that the ex-consultant had raised concerns about how BBC Arabic reported on the war in Gaza.
The newspaper said the adviser alleged there were "institutional issues", which had not been addressed by top executives. He reportedly cited "clear disparities" between the reporting of the hostilities on BBC Arabic and on the primary BBC website.
One issue highlighted was the frequent use of commentators who were prejudiced against Jewish people or pro-Hamas.
Criticism of Trans Issues Reporting
The 19-page file is also said to have faulted the BBC's handling of transgender issues, saying the broadcaster had been "captured by a small group of [staff] promoting the Stonewall view" of gender identity issues and that its LGBT unit would "decline 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 "constant drip-feed of one-sided stories promoting the trans experience without adequate fairness or objectivity".
BBC Reply
In answer, the BBC stated: "While we don’t comment on leaked documents, when the BBC receives feedback it takes it seriously and considers it carefully."
"The former adviser 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."
