Donald Trump's press secretary has described the BBC as "100% fake news" and a "propaganda machine" in a blunt discussion. These remarks follow allegations of bias at the network.
White House Official Criticizes BBC Coverage
Karoline Leavitt, a high-ranking figure in the previous US government, stated that viewing BBC bulletins during trips to the UK "ruins" her day. She claimed that the public are "forced to foot the bill for a liberal propaganda machine."
Dispute Over Edited Speech
The spokesperson's statements came after MPs 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 report leaked to a newspaper suggested that an episode of the current affairs programme "thoroughly deceived" viewers by splicing two parts of the speech together.
The broadcast depicted the president saying he would walk with his followers to the Capitol ahead of the disturbances on 6 January 2021, urging them to "fight like hell". Nevertheless, it excluded a section of the speech where he advised 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 obliged 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 Editing Problems
The publication said its reporting was based on a note written by a former adviser to the BBC's content standards committee. The expert departed his position recently and has not commented on the document, understood to have been revealed by a insider.
An extract 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 Widespread Problems
The memo reportedly noted that the ex-consultant had raised concerns about how BBC Arabic reported on the war in Gaza.
The newspaper said the author asserted there were "systemic problems", 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 main BBC site.
One matter highlighted was the repeated use of analysts who were prejudiced against Jewish people or supportive of the militant group.
Criticism of Transgender Issues Reporting
The 19-page file is also said to have criticised the BBC's handling of gender identity matters, stating the network 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 posing challenging questions about transgender matters were suppressed, with a "constant drip-feed of biased stories celebrating the trans experience without adequate balance or impartiality".
The Broadcaster Response
In answer, the BBC said: "While we don’t comment on leaked documents, when the BBC receives feedback it takes it seriously and considers it carefully."
"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."
