Donald Trump's press secretary has characterized the BBC as "100% fake news" and a "biased media outlet" in a forthright interview. These remarks follow claims of bias at the network.
Senior Administration Figure Condemns BBC Reporting
Karoline Leavitt, a senior figure in the Trump administration, remarked that watching BBC news reports during visits to the UK "ruins" her day. She claimed that taxpayers are "forced to foot the bill for a leftist propaganda machine."
Controversy Over Altered Address
The spokesperson's statements emerged after lawmakers said the broadcaster had "serious questions to answer" regarding how a speech 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 "thoroughly deceived" audiences by combining two segments of the speech together.
The programme showed the president saying he would walk with his followers to the Capitol ahead of the riots on January 6th, encouraging them to "struggle intensely". Nevertheless, it omitted a section of the speech 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 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 overt 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 Issues
The newspaper reported its coverage was based on a memo authored by a former consultant to the BBC's content standards board. The expert departed his position recently and has not spoken on the file, believed to have been leaked by a insider.
An extract published stated: ""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."
Claims of Systemic Issues
The memo reportedly added that the former adviser had raised worries about how BBC Arabic covered the conflict in Gaza.
The outlet said the adviser asserted there were "institutional issues", which had not been resolved by top executives. He supposedly cited "stark differences" between the coverage of the war on BBC Arabic and on the primary BBC site.
One issue highlighted was the repeated use of commentators who were antisemitic or supportive of the militant group.
Censure of Transgender Topics Reporting
The 19-page file is also said to have faulted the BBC's handling of transgender issues, saying the broadcaster had been "captured 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 said to have claimed that stories raising challenging questions about transgender matters were suppressed, with a "constant drip-feed of biased stories promoting the trans experience without adequate balance or impartiality".
The Broadcaster Reply
In answer, the BBC stated: "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.|The ex-consultant previously advised a panel where varied perspectives on our reporting are regularly examined and contested."
