BBC Labeled as "100% Fake News" by the Former President's Press Secretary
The former US president's press secretary has described the BBC as "completely fake news" and a "biased media outlet" in a blunt discussion. These remarks follow allegations of bias at the broadcaster.
Senior Administration Figure Criticizes BBC Reporting
Karoline Leavitt, a senior figure in the Trump administration, stated that viewing BBC bulletins during visits to the UK "ruins" her day. She claimed that the public are "forced to foot the bill for a leftist propaganda machine."
Controversy Over Edited Speech
The spokesperson's comments came after MPs said the corporation had "significant concerns to answer" regarding how a public address by the US president was modified in a BBC Panorama program.
A document leaked to a newspaper suggested that an installment of the current affairs programme "completely misled" viewers by splicing two parts of the oration together.
The broadcast depicted the leader saying he would march with his supporters to the Capitol prior to the disturbances on 6 January 2021, encouraging them to "fight like hell". However, it omitted a section of the talk where he advised the crowd "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 continued: "Every time I journey 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 newspaper said its coverage was based on a note authored by a ex- adviser to the BBC's editorial guidelines board. The adviser left his position recently and has not commented on the file, understood to have been revealed by a insider.
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 Issues
The report allegedly added that the ex-consultant had expressed concerns about how BBC Arabic covered the conflict in Gaza.
The outlet said the adviser asserted there were "systemic problems", which had not been resolved by top executives. He reportedly cited "clear disparities" between the reporting of the war on BBC Arabic and on the primary BBC site.
One matter highlighted was the repeated use of analysts who were prejudiced against Jewish people or supportive of the militant group.
Criticism of Trans Issues Coverage
The 19-page dossier is also said 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 "decline to cover any stories raising difficult questions".
It is said to have claimed that stories posing complex questions about trans issues were suppressed, with a "constant drip-feed of biased stories promoting 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."
