Donald Trump's press secretary has described the BBC as "100% fake news" and a "biased media outlet" in a blunt interview. These remarks follow allegations of bias at the network.
White House Official Condemns BBC Reporting
The White House official, a high-ranking figure in the Trump administration, remarked that watching BBC news reports during trips to the UK "ruins" her day. She asserted that the public are "forced to foot the bill for a leftist propaganda machine."
Controversy Over Altered Address
Leavitt's statements came after lawmakers said the corporation had "significant concerns to answer" regarding how a public address by the American leader was edited in a BBC Panorama documentary.
A report leaked to a publication indicated that an episode of the news programme "completely misled" audiences by combining two parts of the oration together.
The programme depicted the president saying he would march with his supporters to the Capitol prior to the riots on January 6th, encouraging them to "fight like hell". However, it omitted a portion of the speech 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 travel 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 Memo Highlights Editing Problems
The newspaper said its coverage was based on a memo authored by a former adviser to the BBC's editorial guidelines board. The adviser left his role earlier this year and has not commented on the file, understood to have been leaked by a whistleblower.
A passage published 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 Problems
The report reportedly added that the former adviser had raised worries about how BBC Arabic covered the conflict in Gaza.
The newspaper claimed the author alleged there were "institutional issues", which had not been addressed by top executives. He reportedly cited "stark differences" between the reporting of the war on BBC Arabic and on the main BBC site.
One matter pointed out was the repeated use of analysts who were prejudiced against Jewish people or supportive of the militant group.
Criticism of Transgender Topics Coverage
The 19-page dossier is also reported to have faulted the BBC's coverage of gender identity matters, saying the broadcaster had been "influenced 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 alleged that stories raising challenging questions about trans issues were suppressed, with a "constant drip-feed of biased stories promoting 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."
