British Broadcasting Corporation Labeled as "100% False Information" by the Former President's Press Secretary
Donald Trump's official spokesperson has characterized the BBC as "100% fake news" and a "biased media outlet" in a blunt discussion. This comes allegations of partiality at the network.
Senior Administration Figure Condemns BBC Coverage
The White House official, a senior figure in the Trump administration, remarked that viewing BBC news reports during trips to the UK "spoils" her day. She claimed that taxpayers are "compelled to foot the bill for a leftist propaganda machine."
Controversy Over Edited Address
The spokesperson's statements emerged after MPs said the corporation had "serious questions to answer" regarding how a speech by the US president was modified in a BBC Panorama program.
A report disclosed to a newspaper indicated that an installment of the current affairs programme "completely misled" audiences by splicing two segments of the oration together.
The broadcast showed the president saying he would walk with his followers to the Capitol prior to the riots on 6 January 2021, urging them to "fight like hell". Nevertheless, it omitted 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 added: "Whenever 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 Emphasizes Production Problems
The newspaper said its reporting was based on a memo written by a former consultant to the BBC's editorial guidelines board. The adviser left his position recently and has not spoken on the document, understood to have been revealed by a whistleblower.
A passage published 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 Problems
The memo allegedly added that the ex-consultant had expressed worries about how BBC Arabic covered the conflict in Gaza.
The outlet claimed the author asserted there were "systemic problems", which had not been addressed by top executives. He supposedly cited "clear disparities" between the coverage of the hostilities on BBC Arabic and on the main BBC website.
One issue highlighted was the repeated use of commentators who were antisemitic or pro-Hamas.
Censure of Trans Issues Reporting
The 19-page dossier is also reported to have criticised the BBC's coverage of gender identity matters, stating the network had been "influenced by a small group of [staff] promoting the Stonewall view" of gender identity issues and that its LGBT desk would "refuse to cover any stories raising difficult questions".
It is reported to have claimed that stories posing complex questions about trans issues were suppressed, with a "steady stream of biased stories celebrating the trans experience without adequate fairness or objectivity".
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."
"Michael Prescott 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."