Donald Trump's press secretary has characterized the BBC as "completely fake news" and a "propaganda machine" in a forthright discussion. This comes allegations of bias at the network.
Senior Administration Figure Criticizes BBC Coverage
Karoline Leavitt, a high-ranking representative in the Trump administration, remarked that viewing BBC news reports during visits to the UK "spoils" her day. She asserted that the public are "forced to foot the bill for a liberal propaganda machine."
Dispute Over Altered Speech
The spokesperson's comments emerged after lawmakers said the broadcaster had "serious questions to answer" regarding how a speech by the American leader was modified in a BBC Panorama documentary.
A report disclosed to a publication suggested that an installment of the current affairs programme "thoroughly deceived" viewers by combining two parts of the speech together.
The programme depicted the president saying he would walk with his followers to the Capitol prior to the disturbances on 6 January 2021, encouraging them to "fight like hell". Nevertheless, it excluded a section of the speech where he advised the assembly "to peacefully and patriotically make your voices heard".
“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 added: "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 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 Emphasizes Production Issues
The newspaper said its coverage was based on a memo written by a ex- consultant to the BBC's content standards committee. The adviser left his role earlier this year and has not commented on the document, understood to have been revealed 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 memo allegedly noted that the ex-consultant had expressed concerns about how BBC Arabic covered the war in Gaza.
The outlet 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 hostilities on BBC Arabic and on the primary BBC site.
One issue pointed out was the repeated use of commentators who were prejudiced against Jewish people or pro-Hamas.
Criticism of Trans Topics Reporting
The lengthy dossier is also reported to have criticised the BBC's coverage of gender identity matters, stating the broadcaster had been "influenced by a small group of [staff] promoting the Stonewall view" of sexual identity issues and that its LGBT desk would "refuse to cover any stories raising difficult questions".
It is said to have claimed that stories raising complex questions about transgender matters were suppressed, with a "steady stream of one-sided stories celebrating the trans experience without adequate balance or objectivity".
BBC Reply
In response, the BBC said: "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."
