The former US president's press secretary has characterized the BBC as "100% fake news" and a "biased media outlet" in a forthright interview. These remarks follow claims of partiality at the network.
Senior Administration Figure Criticizes BBC Coverage
The White House official, 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
Leavitt's statements emerged 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 installment of the news programme "completely misled" viewers by splicing two segments of the speech together.
The programme showed the president saying he would march with his followers to the Capitol ahead of the riots on 6 January 2021, urging them to "fight like hell". Nevertheless, it omitted a section of the talk where he advised the crowd "to express views calmly and loyally".
“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 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."
Leaked Memo Emphasizes Production Problems
The newspaper reported its coverage was based on a memo written by a ex- adviser to the BBC's editorial guidelines board. The expert left his role recently and has not spoken on the file, understood to have been revealed by a insider.
A passage published 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 Problems
The memo allegedly noted that the former adviser had expressed concerns about how BBC Arabic covered the war in Gaza.
The newspaper claimed the adviser alleged there were "systemic problems", which had not been resolved by senior management. He reportedly cited "stark differences" between the reporting of the war on BBC Arabic and on the primary BBC website.
One issue pointed out was the repeated use of commentators who were prejudiced against Jewish people or supportive of the militant group.
Criticism of Transgender Topics Coverage
The 19-page dossier is also said to have criticised the BBC's handling of gender identity matters, stating the broadcaster had been "captured 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 said to have alleged that stories posing complex questions about trans issues were downplayed, with a "constant drip-feed of one-sided stories celebrating the trans experience without adequate balance or objectivity".
BBC Response
In response, the BBC said: "Although we refrain from discussing disclosed papers, the BBC treats all input earnestly and reviews it thoroughly."
"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."
