Donald Trump's press secretary has described the BBC as "100% fake news" and a "biased media outlet" in a forthright interview. These remarks follow allegations of bias at the network.
Senior Administration Figure Condemns BBC Reporting
The White House official, a senior figure in the Trump administration, stated that viewing BBC news reports during trips to the UK "ruins" her day. She claimed that taxpayers are "compelled to foot the bill for a leftist propaganda machine."
Controversy Over Edited Speech
Leavitt's statements came after MPs said the broadcaster had "serious questions to answer" regarding how a speech by the American leader was modified in a BBC Panorama program.
A report leaked to a publication suggested that an installment of the news programme "thoroughly deceived" viewers by combining two parts of the speech together.
The broadcast showed the leader saying he would march with his supporters to the Capitol ahead of the riots on January 6th, encouraging them to "fight like hell". However, it omitted 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.”
The press secretary continued: "Every time I journey 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 Memo Highlights Production Problems
The publication reported its reporting was based on a memo written by a former adviser to the BBC's content standards committee. The expert left his role earlier this year and has not commented on the document, believed to have been revealed by a whistleblower.
An extract 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."
Claims of Systemic Issues
The memo reportedly added that the former adviser had expressed worries about how BBC Arabic reported on the war in Gaza.
The newspaper said the author asserted there were "systemic problems", 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 main BBC website.
One matter highlighted was the repeated use of commentators who were prejudiced against Jewish people or pro-Hamas.
Censure of Trans Issues Coverage
The lengthy file is also said to have faulted the BBC's handling of transgender issues, stating the network 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 claimed that stories raising complex questions about trans issues were suppressed, with a "constant drip-feed of biased stories promoting the trans experience without adequate fairness or impartiality".
The Broadcaster Reply
In response, the BBC said: "Although we refrain from discussing disclosed papers, the BBC treats all input earnestly and reviews it thoroughly."
"Michael Prescott 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."
