The former US president's press secretary has characterized the BBC as "100% fake news" and a "propaganda machine" in a blunt discussion. These remarks follow claims of partiality at the network.
Senior Administration Figure Condemns BBC Coverage
The White House official, a high-ranking figure in the Trump administration, remarked that viewing 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 Altered Speech
Leavitt's statements came after MPs said the corporation had "serious questions to answer" regarding how a speech by the US president was edited in a BBC Panorama documentary.
A report disclosed to a publication suggested that an episode of the news programme "thoroughly deceived" audiences by combining two segments of the oration together.
The broadcast showed 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 portion of the talk where he urged the assembly "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.”
The press secretary added: "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 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 Document Emphasizes Editing Issues
The publication reported its reporting was based on a memo authored by a ex- adviser to the BBC's content standards board. The adviser left his position earlier this year and has not commented on the file, believed to have been leaked by a whistleblower.
An extract published read: "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."
Claims of Widespread Issues
The memo allegedly noted that the former adviser had raised concerns about how BBC Arabic reported on the conflict in Gaza.
The newspaper said the author alleged there were "institutional issues", which had not been addressed by top executives. He supposedly cited "stark differences" between the coverage of the war on BBC Arabic and on the main BBC site.
One matter highlighted was the repeated use of analysts who were prejudiced against Jewish people or supportive of the militant group.
Criticism of Transgender Topics Reporting
The lengthy dossier is also reported to have criticised the BBC's coverage of transgender issues, saying the broadcaster had been "influenced by a small group of [staff] promoting the Stonewall view" of sexual identity issues and that its LGBT unit would "decline to cover any stories raising difficult questions".
It is said to have claimed that stories posing complex questions about transgender matters were downplayed, with a "steady stream of one-sided stories promoting the trans experience without adequate fairness or objectivity".
BBC 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."
"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."
