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 broadcaster.
Senior Administration Figure Condemns BBC Reporting
Karoline Leavitt, a high-ranking figure in the Trump administration, remarked that viewing BBC news reports during visits to the UK "spoils" her day. She asserted that taxpayers are "forced to foot the bill for a liberal propaganda machine."
Controversy Over Altered Speech
The spokesperson's statements came after MPs said the corporation had "significant concerns to answer" regarding how a speech by the American leader was edited in a BBC Panorama documentary.
A report leaked to a newspaper suggested that an installment of the news programme "completely misled" audiences by combining two segments of the speech together.
The programme showed the president saying he would walk with his followers to the Capitol prior to the riots on January 6th, urging them to "struggle intensely". However, it excluded a section 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.”
The press secretary added: "Whenever I travel to the United Kingdom with President Trump and am obliged 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 Document Emphasizes Editing Issues
The publication said its reporting was based on a note written by a ex- adviser to the BBC's content standards committee. The adviser left his role earlier this year and has not spoken on the file, understood to have been leaked by a whistleblower.
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."
Allegations of Systemic Issues
The report reportedly added that the ex-consultant had expressed worries about how BBC Arabic covered the war in Gaza.
The outlet said the author asserted there were "systemic problems", which had not been resolved by top executives. He reportedly cited "stark differences" between the reporting of the hostilities on BBC Arabic and on the main BBC website.
One matter highlighted was the frequent use of commentators who were prejudiced against Jewish people or pro-Hamas.
Censure of Transgender Topics Coverage
The 19-page dossier is also reported to have faulted the BBC's coverage of transgender issues, 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 "decline to cover any stories raising difficult questions".
It is reported to have alleged that stories posing challenging questions about transgender matters were downplayed, with a "steady stream of one-sided stories celebrating the trans experience without adequate balance or impartiality".
The Broadcaster Reply
In response, the BBC said: "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."
