Donald Trump's official spokesperson has described the BBC as "100% fake news" and a "biased media outlet" in a blunt interview. This comes claims of bias at the network.
White House Official Criticizes BBC Coverage
Karoline Leavitt, a high-ranking representative in the Trump administration, remarked that watching BBC news reports during trips to the UK "spoils" her day. She asserted that the public are "forced to foot the bill for a leftist propaganda machine."
Controversy Over Altered Speech
Leavitt's statements came after MPs said the broadcaster had "significant concerns to answer" regarding how a public address by the American leader was edited in a BBC Panorama program.
A report disclosed to a newspaper suggested that an installment of the news programme "completely misled" viewers by splicing two segments of the oration together.
The programme showed the leader saying he would march with his supporters to the Capitol ahead of the riots on January 6th, encouraging them to "fight like hell". However, it excluded a portion of the speech where he advised 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: "Whenever I journey 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."
Leaked Document Emphasizes Production Issues
The newspaper said its reporting was based on a note authored by a former consultant to the BBC's content standards board. The adviser departed his position recently and has not commented on the file, understood to have been leaked by a whistleblower.
A passage published 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 Systemic Issues
The report allegedly noted that the ex-consultant had expressed concerns about how BBC Arabic covered the conflict in Gaza.
The newspaper said the author asserted there were "systemic problems", which had not been addressed by senior management. He reportedly cited "clear disparities" between the coverage of the war on BBC Arabic and on the main BBC website.
One matter highlighted was the repeated use of commentators who were prejudiced against Jewish people or pro-Hamas.
Censure of Trans Topics Reporting
The 19-page file is also reported to have faulted the BBC's handling of gender identity matters, 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 reported to have claimed that stories posing complex questions about trans issues were suppressed, with a "constant drip-feed of biased stories celebrating the trans experience without adequate balance or impartiality".
BBC Reply
In response, 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.|He previously advised a panel where varied perspectives on our reporting are regularly examined and contested."
