The former US president's press secretary has described the BBC as "100% fake news" and a "propaganda machine" in a forthright interview. These remarks follow allegations of bias at the broadcaster.
White House Official Criticizes BBC Reporting
The White House official, a high-ranking representative in the Trump administration, stated that viewing BBC news reports during visits 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 emerged after MPs said the broadcaster had "serious questions to answer" regarding how a speech by the American leader was edited in a BBC Panorama program.
A report leaked to a newspaper suggested that an episode of the news programme "thoroughly deceived" viewers by combining two parts of the oration together.
The broadcast showed the leader saying he would march with his followers to the Capitol prior to the disturbances on 6 January 2021, urging them to "fight like hell". However, it excluded a section of the talk where he urged 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 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 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."
Leaked Memo Emphasizes Production Problems
The publication said its coverage was based on a memo authored by a ex- consultant to the BBC's content standards committee. The adviser left his position earlier this year and has not commented on the file, believed to have been leaked 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."
Claims of Widespread Problems
The report reportedly added that the ex-consultant had raised concerns about how BBC Arabic covered the war in Gaza.
The outlet claimed the author asserted there were "institutional issues", which had not been addressed by top executives. He reportedly cited "stark differences" between the coverage of the war on BBC Arabic and on the main BBC website.
One matter pointed out was the repeated use of commentators who were prejudiced against Jewish people or supportive of the militant group.
Censure of Trans Issues Coverage
The lengthy file is also reported to have faulted the BBC's handling of gender identity matters, saying the broadcaster had been "influenced by a small group of [staff] promoting the Stonewall view" of sexual identity issues and that its LGBT unit would "decline to cover any stories raising difficult questions".
It is said to have claimed that stories posing complex questions about trans issues were downplayed, with a "steady stream of one-sided stories promoting the trans experience without adequate fairness or objectivity".
BBC Response
In answer, the BBC stated: "Although we refrain from discussing disclosed papers, the BBC treats all input earnestly and reviews it thoroughly."
"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."
