The former US president's official spokesperson has described the BBC as "100% fake news" and a "biased media outlet" in a forthright discussion. These remarks follow claims of bias at the broadcaster.
Senior Administration Figure Condemns BBC Reporting
Karoline Leavitt, a high-ranking figure in the previous US government, stated that watching BBC bulletins during trips to the UK "spoils" her day. She claimed that the public are "forced to foot the bill for a leftist propaganda machine."
Dispute Over Edited Address
The spokesperson's statements came after MPs said the broadcaster had "serious questions to answer" regarding how a public address by the US president was modified in a BBC Panorama documentary.
A document leaked to a publication suggested that an episode of the news programme "thoroughly deceived" viewers by splicing two segments of the speech together.
The broadcast showed the leader saying he would walk with his followers to the Capitol prior to the disturbances on January 6th, urging them to "struggle intensely". However, it excluded a portion of the talk where he advised 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 continued: "Whenever I journey to the United Kingdom with President Trump and am forced to watch the BBC in our hotel rooms, it ruins 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 Production Issues
The newspaper reported its coverage was based on a note written by a ex- consultant to the BBC's content standards committee. The expert departed his position recently and has not spoken on the file, believed to have been revealed by a insider.
An extract 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 Systemic Issues
The memo reportedly noted that the ex-consultant had expressed concerns about how BBC Arabic covered the war in Gaza.
The newspaper claimed the author asserted there were "institutional issues", which had not been resolved by top executives. He reportedly cited "stark differences" between the coverage of the hostilities on BBC Arabic and on the main BBC site.
One matter highlighted was the frequent use of commentators who were prejudiced against Jewish people or supportive of the militant group.
Criticism of Transgender Issues Reporting
The 19-page dossier is also said to have faulted the BBC's handling of transgender issues, 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 "refuse to cover any stories raising difficult questions".
It is reported to have alleged that stories posing complex questions about trans issues were suppressed, with a "constant drip-feed of biased stories celebrating the trans experience without adequate fairness or impartiality".
BBC Response
In answer, 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."
