Donald Trump's press secretary has described the BBC as "completely fake news" and a "biased media outlet" in a forthright discussion. This comes allegations of partiality at the network.
White House Official Condemns BBC Coverage
The White House official, a high-ranking figure in the Trump administration, remarked that watching BBC news reports during visits to the UK "spoils" her day. She asserted that the public are "compelled to foot the bill for a liberal propaganda machine."
Controversy Over Altered Address
Leavitt's comments emerged after lawmakers said the corporation had "significant concerns to answer" regarding how a speech by the US president was modified in a BBC Panorama documentary.
A document disclosed to a newspaper suggested that an episode of the news programme "thoroughly deceived" viewers by splicing two parts of the speech together.
The programme showed the president saying he would march with his followers to the Capitol prior to the disturbances on 6 January 2021, encouraging them to "fight like hell". Nevertheless, it omitted 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.”
Leavitt added: "Whenever 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 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."
Disclosed Document Highlights Editing Problems
The publication said its coverage was based on a note written by a former adviser to the BBC's content standards board. The adviser left his position earlier this year and has not commented on the document, believed to have been revealed by a whistleblower.
An extract 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 report allegedly noted that the former adviser had expressed worries about how BBC Arabic covered the war in Gaza.
The newspaper said the author asserted there were "institutional issues", which had not been addressed by senior management. He supposedly cited "stark differences" between the reporting of the hostilities on BBC Arabic and on the primary BBC website.
One matter pointed out was the repeated use of commentators who were prejudiced against Jewish people or supportive of the militant group.
Criticism of Trans Topics Reporting
The 19-page dossier is also said to have faulted the BBC's coverage of transgender issues, 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 "decline to cover any stories raising difficult questions".
It is said to have alleged that stories raising challenging questions about transgender matters were suppressed, with a "steady stream of biased stories promoting the trans experience without adequate balance or objectivity".
The Broadcaster Response
In response, the BBC stated: "While we don’t comment on leaked documents, when the BBC receives feedback it takes it seriously and considers it carefully."
"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."
