Donald Trump's press secretary has characterized the BBC as "completely fake news" and a "biased media outlet" in a forthright interview. This comes claims of partiality at the broadcaster.
Senior Administration Figure Criticizes BBC Coverage
Karoline Leavitt, a high-ranking figure in the previous US government, stated that viewing BBC news reports during visits to the UK "ruins" her day. She asserted that taxpayers are "compelled to foot the bill for a leftist propaganda machine."
Dispute Over Altered Speech
Leavitt's statements emerged after MPs said the corporation had "serious questions to answer" regarding how a speech by the American leader was edited in a BBC Panorama documentary.
A report leaked to a publication suggested that an episode of the current affairs programme "thoroughly deceived" viewers by combining two parts of the speech together.
The programme showed the leader saying he would walk with his supporters to the Capitol prior to the riots on January 6th, encouraging them to "struggle intensely". Nevertheless, it omitted a portion 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 travel 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 Production Issues
The newspaper reported its reporting was based on a note written by a ex- adviser to the BBC's editorial guidelines board. The expert departed his role earlier this year and has not commented on the document, believed to have been leaked by a whistleblower.
A passage published 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 Widespread Problems
The report allegedly noted that the former adviser had raised worries about how BBC Arabic reported on the war in Gaza.
The newspaper said the author alleged there were "institutional issues", which had not been addressed by senior management. He supposedly cited "stark differences" between the coverage of the war on BBC Arabic and on the primary BBC website.
One matter highlighted was the repeated use of analysts who were antisemitic or pro-Hamas.
Criticism of Transgender Topics Reporting
The lengthy dossier is also reported to have faulted the BBC's coverage of gender identity matters, saying the broadcaster had been "captured by a small group of [staff] promoting the Stonewall view" of gender 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 transgender matters were suppressed, with a "steady stream of one-sided stories celebrating the trans experience without adequate fairness or impartiality".
BBC Response
In response, the BBC said: "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.|The ex-consultant previously advised a panel where varied perspectives on our reporting are regularly examined and contested."
