Donald Trump's official spokesperson has characterized the BBC as "completely fake news" and a "biased media outlet" in a forthright interview. These remarks follow allegations of partiality at the network.
White House Official Condemns BBC Coverage
The White House official, a senior representative in the Trump administration, remarked that viewing BBC news reports during visits to the UK "spoils" her day. She claimed that the public are "forced to foot the bill for a leftist propaganda machine."
Dispute Over Altered Address
Leavitt's comments came 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 suggested that an episode of the news programme "completely misled" audiences by combining two segments of the oration together.
The programme showed the president saying he would march with his followers to the Capitol prior to the riots on 6 January 2021, encouraging them to "struggle intensely". However, it omitted 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: "Every time 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 Highlights Production Problems
The publication said its reporting was based on a memo written by a former consultant to the BBC's editorial guidelines board. The adviser left his role earlier this year and has not commented on the document, believed to have been revealed by a whistleblower.
An extract 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 Systemic Problems
The memo allegedly added that the ex-consultant had raised worries about how BBC Arabic covered the conflict in Gaza.
The outlet said the adviser alleged there were "institutional issues", which had not been addressed by senior management. He supposedly cited "stark differences" between the coverage of the hostilities 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 lengthy dossier 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 unit would "refuse 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 fairness or objectivity".
The Broadcaster Reply
In response, the BBC stated: "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.|He previously advised a panel where varied perspectives on our reporting are regularly examined and contested."
