The former US president's official spokesperson has described the BBC as "completely fake news" and a "propaganda machine" in a forthright discussion. This comes allegations of partiality at the broadcaster.
White House Official Condemns BBC Reporting
The White House official, a high-ranking figure in the previous US government, remarked that watching BBC news reports during visits to the UK "ruins" her day. She asserted that the public are "forced to foot the bill for a leftist propaganda machine."
Controversy Over Altered Speech
The spokesperson's statements emerged 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 program.
A report leaked to a newspaper suggested that an episode of the news programme "completely misled" audiences by combining two segments of the oration together.
The broadcast depicted the president saying he would march with his supporters to the Capitol prior to the riots on 6 January 2021, encouraging them to "fight like hell". However, it excluded a section of the talk 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 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 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."
Disclosed Document Highlights Editing Issues
The newspaper said its reporting was based on a note authored by a former consultant to the BBC's editorial guidelines board. The expert departed his position earlier this year and has not commented on the file, believed to have been leaked by a whistleblower.
An extract released stated: ""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."
Claims of Systemic Problems
The report reportedly added that the former adviser had expressed concerns about how BBC Arabic reported on the conflict in Gaza.
The newspaper said the author asserted there were "systemic problems", which had not been resolved by top executives. He reportedly cited "clear disparities" between the reporting of the hostilities on BBC Arabic and on the primary BBC site.
One matter highlighted was the repeated use of analysts who were antisemitic or pro-Hamas.
Censure of Transgender Topics Coverage
The lengthy file is also reported 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 unit would "refuse to cover any stories raising difficult questions".
It is said to have claimed that stories raising complex questions about transgender matters were downplayed, with a "steady stream of biased stories celebrating the trans experience without adequate fairness or impartiality".
BBC Reply
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."
"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."
