The former US president's press secretary has characterized the BBC as "100% fake news" and a "biased media outlet" in a forthright discussion. These remarks follow allegations of bias at the network.
Senior Administration Figure Criticizes BBC Reporting
The White House official, a high-ranking figure in the previous US government, remarked that watching BBC bulletins during trips to the UK "spoils" her day. She claimed that taxpayers are "forced to foot the bill for a liberal propaganda machine."
Dispute Over Altered Address
Leavitt's statements came after lawmakers said the broadcaster had "serious questions to answer" regarding how a public address by the American leader was edited in a BBC Panorama program.
A report disclosed to a publication suggested that an installment of the current affairs programme "thoroughly deceived" audiences by combining two segments of the oration together.
The programme showed the president saying he would walk with his followers to the Capitol ahead of the riots on 6 January 2021, urging them to "struggle intensely". Nevertheless, it excluded a section of the talk where he urged the crowd "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 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 reported its coverage was based on a memo authored by a former consultant to the BBC's editorial guidelines board. The adviser departed his role earlier this year and has not spoken on the file, understood to have been revealed by a whistleblower.
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 Systemic Issues
The memo allegedly added that the former adviser had expressed worries about how BBC Arabic covered the war in Gaza.
The newspaper said the adviser alleged there were "institutional issues", which had not been resolved by top executives. He reportedly cited "clear disparities" between the coverage of the war on BBC Arabic and on the primary BBC site.
One issue pointed out was the frequent use of analysts who were prejudiced against Jewish people or supportive of the militant group.
Criticism of Trans Topics Coverage
The 19-page dossier is also reported 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 sexual 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 "constant drip-feed of one-sided stories celebrating the trans experience without adequate fairness or objectivity".
BBC Response
In response, the BBC stated: "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."
