The former US president'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 broadcaster.
Senior Administration Figure Condemns BBC Reporting
The White House official, a senior representative in the Trump administration, remarked that viewing BBC bulletins during trips to the UK "ruins" her day. She asserted that taxpayers are "compelled to foot the bill for a leftist propaganda machine."
Controversy Over Edited Address
Leavitt's statements emerged after MPs said the broadcaster had "serious questions to answer" regarding how a public address by the American leader was edited in a BBC Panorama program.
A report leaked to a newspaper suggested that an episode of the current affairs programme "thoroughly deceived" viewers by splicing two segments of the speech together.
The programme depicted the leader saying he would walk with his followers to the Capitol ahead of the disturbances on January 6th, encouraging them to "struggle intensely". However, it excluded a portion of the talk where he urged 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.”
The press secretary continued: "Every time I travel 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."
Disclosed Document Highlights Editing Issues
The newspaper said its coverage was based on a note written by a ex- adviser to the BBC's editorial guidelines board. The expert departed his position recently and has not commented on the file, believed to have been revealed by a whistleblower.
A passage released 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."
Allegations of Widespread Issues
The memo allegedly noted that the former adviser had expressed worries about how BBC Arabic covered the war in Gaza.
The newspaper claimed the author alleged there were "institutional issues", which had not been addressed by senior management. He reportedly cited "clear disparities" between the reporting of the hostilities on BBC Arabic and on the primary BBC website.
One issue pointed out was the repeated use of commentators who were antisemitic or supportive of the militant group.
Criticism of Transgender Topics Reporting
The lengthy file is also reported to have criticised the BBC's handling of gender identity matters, stating 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 "refuse to cover any stories raising difficult questions".
It is said to have alleged that stories posing challenging questions about transgender matters were suppressed, with a "constant drip-feed of biased stories promoting the trans experience without adequate balance or impartiality".
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.|He previously advised a panel where varied perspectives on our reporting are regularly examined and contested."
