The former US president's official spokesperson has described the BBC as "100% fake news" and a "propaganda machine" in a forthright discussion. These remarks follow allegations of partiality at the network.
White House Official Criticizes BBC Reporting
The White House official, a high-ranking representative in the Trump administration, remarked that watching BBC news reports during trips to the UK "ruins" her day. She asserted that taxpayers are "forced to foot the bill for a leftist propaganda machine."
Dispute Over Edited Speech
Leavitt's comments emerged after lawmakers said the broadcaster had "serious questions to answer" regarding how a speech by the US president was edited in a BBC Panorama program.
A report leaked to a newspaper suggested that an installment of the current affairs 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 ahead of the riots on 6 January 2021, encouraging them to "fight like hell". Nevertheless, it excluded a section of the speech where he urged the crowd "to express views calmly and loyally".
“This intentionally deceptive, carefully cut footage from the BBC further proves they are entirely, 100% fake news, unworthy of airtime on the screens of the UK's admirable citizens.”
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 mars 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."
Leaked Memo Highlights Production Issues
The publication said its reporting was based on a memo written by a ex- consultant to the BBC's editorial guidelines board. The adviser left his position earlier this year and has not spoken on the file, understood to have been revealed by a insider.
An extract released 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 Systemic Issues
The report allegedly added that the former adviser had raised concerns about how BBC Arabic covered the war in Gaza.
The outlet claimed the author asserted there were "institutional issues", which had not been addressed by senior management. He supposedly cited "clear disparities" between the reporting of the hostilities on BBC Arabic and on the primary BBC website.
One issue pointed out was the frequent use of analysts who were prejudiced against Jewish people or pro-Hamas.
Censure of Transgender Issues Reporting
The 19-page file 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 biased stories promoting the trans experience without adequate fairness or impartiality".
BBC Response
In response, the BBC stated: "Although we refrain from discussing disclosed papers, the BBC treats all input earnestly and reviews it thoroughly."
"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."
