The former US president's official spokesperson has described the BBC as "completely fake news" and a "biased media outlet" in a forthright discussion. This comes allegations of partiality at the network.
Senior Administration Figure Condemns BBC Reporting
The White House official, a high-ranking figure in the previous US government, stated that watching BBC bulletins during trips to the UK "ruins" her day. She claimed that taxpayers are "compelled to foot the bill for a liberal propaganda machine."
Dispute Over Altered Address
Leavitt's statements came after lawmakers said the corporation had "significant concerns to answer" regarding how a public address by the American leader was edited in a BBC Panorama documentary.
A document leaked to a publication indicated that an installment of the news programme "completely misled" audiences by combining two segments of the speech together.
The programme depicted the leader saying he would walk with his supporters to the Capitol ahead of the riots on January 6th, encouraging them to "fight like hell". Nevertheless, it excluded a portion of the talk where he advised 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.”
The press secretary continued: "Whenever 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 Problems
The newspaper reported its reporting was based on a note authored by a former consultant to the BBC's content standards committee. The adviser left his position earlier this year and has not spoken on the document, believed to have been revealed by a whistleblower.
An extract published read: ""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."
Allegations of Systemic Issues
The report allegedly added that the former adviser had expressed worries about how BBC Arabic covered the war in Gaza.
The outlet said the author alleged there were "systemic problems", which had not been resolved by senior management. He supposedly cited "clear disparities" between the reporting of the war on BBC Arabic and on the main BBC site.
One issue highlighted was the repeated use of commentators who were antisemitic or supportive of the militant group.
Censure of Trans Issues Reporting
The lengthy dossier is also said to have faulted 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 unit would "refuse to cover any stories raising difficult questions".
It is reported to have claimed that stories posing challenging questions about trans issues were downplayed, with a "steady stream of one-sided stories promoting the trans experience without adequate fairness or impartiality".
BBC Reply
In answer, 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."
