The former US president's official spokesperson has characterized the BBC as "completely fake news" and a "propaganda machine" in a blunt discussion. This comes claims of partiality at the network.
White House Official Criticizes BBC Coverage
Karoline Leavitt, a senior figure in the previous US government, remarked that viewing BBC news reports during trips to the UK "spoils" her day. She asserted that the public are "compelled to foot the bill for a leftist propaganda machine."
Controversy Over Altered Address
Leavitt's comments emerged after MPs said the broadcaster had "serious questions to answer" regarding how a public address by the US president was modified in a BBC Panorama documentary.
A report leaked to a newspaper indicated that an episode of the current affairs programme "completely misled" viewers by combining two parts of the oration together.
The broadcast depicted the president saying he would march with his supporters to the Capitol ahead of the disturbances on 6 January 2021, urging them to "struggle intensely". However, it excluded a section of the talk where he urged the crowd "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: "Every time 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."
Disclosed Memo Highlights Production Issues
The publication reported its coverage was based on a memo written by a former consultant to the BBC's editorial guidelines board. The expert departed his position recently and has not commented on the document, understood to have been leaked by a insider.
An extract released 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."
Allegations of Systemic Problems
The memo allegedly noted that the ex-consultant had raised concerns about how BBC Arabic covered the conflict in Gaza.
The newspaper claimed the adviser asserted there were "systemic problems", which had not been resolved by top executives. He supposedly cited "clear disparities" between the reporting of the war on BBC Arabic and on the primary BBC website.
One matter pointed out was the repeated use of commentators who were antisemitic or pro-Hamas.
Criticism of Transgender Topics Reporting
The 19-page file is also reported to have faulted the BBC's handling of transgender issues, saying the network had been "captured 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 said to have claimed that stories posing challenging questions about transgender matters 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 said: "Although we refrain from discussing disclosed papers, the BBC treats all input earnestly and reviews it thoroughly."
"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."
