The former US president's press secretary has characterized the BBC as "completely fake news" and a "biased media outlet" in a blunt interview. This comes claims of partiality at the network.
White House Official Criticizes BBC Coverage
The White House official, a senior representative in the previous US government, stated that viewing BBC bulletins during visits to the UK "ruins" her day. She claimed that taxpayers are "forced to foot the bill for a leftist propaganda machine."
Controversy Over Altered Address
Leavitt's statements came after lawmakers said the corporation had "serious questions to answer" regarding how a public address by the US president was edited in a BBC Panorama documentary.
A document disclosed to a publication suggested that an episode of the current affairs programme "completely misled" audiences by combining two segments of the speech together.
The broadcast depicted the leader saying he would march with his supporters to the Capitol ahead of the riots on 6 January 2021, encouraging them to "fight like hell". Nevertheless, it omitted a portion of the speech where he urged the crowd "to peacefully and patriotically make your voices heard".
“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.”
Leavitt continued: "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 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 Issues
The publication said its reporting was based on a memo written by a ex- adviser to the BBC's content standards board. The expert left his position earlier this year and has not spoken on the document, understood to have been revealed by a insider.
A passage released 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."
Claims of Widespread Issues
The memo allegedly added that the former adviser had raised worries about how BBC Arabic covered the war in Gaza.
The outlet claimed the adviser asserted there were "systemic problems", which had not been addressed by top executives. He supposedly cited "clear disparities" between the reporting of the war on BBC Arabic and on the main BBC site.
One issue pointed out was the frequent use of commentators who were prejudiced against Jewish people or supportive of the militant group.
Censure of Trans Topics Reporting
The lengthy file is also said to have faulted the BBC's coverage of transgender issues, saying the network 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 raising complex questions about trans issues were suppressed, with a "constant drip-feed of biased stories celebrating the trans experience without adequate balance or impartiality".
BBC Response
In answer, 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."
