Donald Trump's press secretary has described the BBC as "100% fake news" and a "propaganda machine" in a blunt interview. These remarks follow claims of bias at the network.
Senior Administration Figure Condemns BBC Coverage
The White House official, a senior figure in the previous US government, remarked that watching BBC news reports during visits to the UK "spoils" her day. She claimed that the public are "forced to foot the bill for a liberal propaganda machine."
Dispute Over Altered Address
Leavitt's comments emerged after MPs said the corporation had "significant concerns to answer" regarding how a public address by the US president was edited in a BBC Panorama documentary.
A report disclosed to a newspaper suggested that an episode of the news programme "completely misled" audiences by combining two segments of the speech together.
The programme depicted the president saying he would march with his followers to the Capitol prior to the riots on January 6th, encouraging them to "struggle intensely". However, it omitted a portion 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.”
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 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 Document Highlights Production Problems
The newspaper said its coverage was based on a note written by a ex- adviser to the BBC's content standards committee. The expert left his position earlier this year and has not spoken on the file, understood to have been revealed by a whistleblower.
A passage 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 allegedly added that the ex-consultant had raised concerns about how BBC Arabic covered the conflict in Gaza.
The newspaper said the author alleged there were "systemic problems", which had not been resolved by senior management. He reportedly cited "clear disparities" between the coverage of the war on BBC Arabic and on the primary BBC site.
One issue highlighted was the repeated use of commentators who were antisemitic or pro-Hamas.
Censure of Trans Topics Coverage
The lengthy file is also said to have criticised the BBC's coverage of gender identity matters, saying the broadcaster had been "captured by a small group of [staff] promoting the Stonewall view" of gender 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 balance or objectivity".
BBC Response
In response, the BBC stated: "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."
