Donald Trump's official spokesperson has characterized the BBC as "100% fake news" and a "propaganda machine" in a forthright interview. These remarks follow claims of bias at the broadcaster.
Senior Administration Figure Criticizes BBC Coverage
The White House official, a senior figure in the previous US government, remarked that watching BBC news reports during trips to the UK "spoils" her day. She asserted that taxpayers are "forced to foot the bill for a leftist propaganda machine."
Dispute Over Edited Speech
The spokesperson's statements came after lawmakers 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 report leaked to a newspaper indicated that an episode of the news programme "completely misled" audiences by splicing two segments of the oration together.
The programme showed the leader saying he would march with his followers to the Capitol prior to the riots on January 6th, encouraging them to "struggle intensely". Nevertheless, it excluded a section of the speech where he urged the assembly "to express views calmly and loyally".
“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 continued: "Every time 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 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 Emphasizes Editing Problems
The publication said its reporting was based on a memo authored by a former consultant to the BBC's editorial guidelines committee. The expert left his role recently and has not commented on the document, understood to have been leaked by a whistleblower.
A passage released 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 Problems
The memo reportedly noted that the ex-consultant had expressed concerns about how BBC Arabic covered the war in Gaza.
The newspaper said the author asserted there were "institutional issues", which had not been resolved by senior management. He supposedly cited "clear disparities" between the coverage of the hostilities on BBC Arabic and on the primary BBC website.
One matter pointed out was the frequent use of commentators who were antisemitic or supportive of the militant group.
Criticism of Transgender Issues Coverage
The 19-page dossier is also reported to have faulted the BBC's handling of transgender issues, saying the network had been "influenced by a small group of [staff] promoting the Stonewall view" of sexual 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 transgender matters were downplayed, with a "steady stream of one-sided stories promoting the trans experience without adequate fairness or objectivity".
BBC Reply
In answer, the BBC stated: "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.|The ex-consultant previously advised a panel where varied perspectives on our reporting are regularly examined and contested."
