Donald Trump's press secretary has characterized the BBC as "100% fake news" and a "biased media outlet" in a blunt interview. These remarks follow claims of bias at the broadcaster.
Senior Administration Figure Criticizes BBC Reporting
The White House official, a senior figure in the Trump administration, stated that watching BBC news reports during trips to the UK "ruins" her day. She claimed that the public are "forced to foot the bill for a liberal propaganda machine."
Dispute Over Edited Speech
Leavitt's statements emerged after lawmakers said the broadcaster had "significant concerns to answer" regarding how a public address by the US president was edited in a BBC Panorama documentary.
A report leaked to a newspaper indicated that an installment of the current affairs programme "completely misled" audiences by combining two parts of the oration together.
The broadcast showed the leader saying he would walk with his supporters to the Capitol prior to the riots on 6 January 2021, urging them to "struggle intensely". Nevertheless, it omitted a section of the talk where he advised 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 travel 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 Document Highlights Editing Issues
The newspaper said its coverage was based on a memo authored by a ex- consultant to the BBC's content standards board. The expert left his role recently and has not spoken on the file, believed to have been leaked 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 report reportedly noted that the ex-consultant had raised worries about how BBC Arabic covered the war in Gaza.
The outlet claimed the author asserted there were "institutional issues", which had not been resolved by top executives. He supposedly cited "stark differences" between the coverage of the hostilities on BBC Arabic and on the primary BBC website.
One matter highlighted was the frequent use of analysts who were prejudiced against Jewish people or supportive of the militant group.
Censure of Transgender Issues Coverage
The 19-page file is also reported to have faulted the BBC's coverage of gender identity matters, saying the network had been "influenced by a small group of [staff] promoting the Stonewall view" of sexual 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 complex questions about transgender matters were suppressed, with a "steady stream of one-sided stories celebrating the trans experience without adequate fairness or impartiality".
BBC Response
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."
