The former US president's press secretary has characterized the BBC as "100% fake news" and a "biased media outlet" in a blunt interview. This comes allegations of bias at the network.
Senior Administration Figure Criticizes BBC Reporting
Karoline Leavitt, a high-ranking representative in the Trump administration, remarked that watching BBC news reports during visits to the UK "ruins" her day. She claimed that the public are "compelled to foot the bill for a leftist propaganda machine."
Controversy Over Edited Address
The spokesperson's comments came after MPs said the corporation had "serious questions to answer" regarding how a speech by the US president was modified in a BBC Panorama program.
A document leaked to a publication indicated that an episode of the current affairs programme "thoroughly deceived" viewers by combining two parts of the speech together.
The broadcast depicted the president saying he would walk with his supporters to the Capitol ahead of the disturbances on January 6th, urging them to "fight like hell". Nevertheless, it omitted a portion of the talk where he advised the assembly "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 added: "Whenever 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."
Leaked Memo Emphasizes Production Problems
The newspaper reported its reporting was based on a note authored by a ex- adviser to the BBC's content standards board. The adviser left his role earlier this year and has not commented on the document, understood 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."
Allegations of Widespread Problems
The memo reportedly added that the ex-consultant had expressed worries about how BBC Arabic reported on the war in Gaza.
The newspaper claimed the adviser alleged there were "institutional issues", which had not been resolved by senior management. He supposedly cited "clear disparities" between the coverage of the hostilities on BBC Arabic and on the main BBC website.
One matter pointed out was the frequent use of commentators who were prejudiced against Jewish people or pro-Hamas.
Criticism of Transgender Issues Coverage
The 19-page file is also reported to have criticised the BBC's coverage 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 "decline to cover any stories raising difficult questions".
It is reported to have claimed that stories posing challenging questions about trans issues were downplayed, with a "steady stream of biased stories celebrating the trans experience without adequate balance or impartiality".
The Broadcaster 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."
