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The former US president's official spokesperson has characterized the BBC as "completely fake news" and a "propaganda machine" in a forthright discussion. This comes claims of bias at the broadcaster.

White House Official Criticizes BBC Coverage

Karoline Leavitt, a senior representative in the previous US government, stated that viewing BBC bulletins during visits to the UK "ruins" her day. She asserted that the public are "forced to foot the bill for a liberal propaganda machine."

Dispute Over Edited Speech

Leavitt'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 program.

A report leaked to a publication indicated that an episode of the news programme "completely misled" audiences by splicing two segments of the speech together.

The broadcast showed the president saying he would walk with his supporters to the Capitol ahead of the riots on 6 January 2021, encouraging them to "fight like hell". However, it excluded a portion of the speech where he urged 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.”

The press secretary continued: "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 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."

Leaked Memo Emphasizes Production Issues

The newspaper said its reporting was based on a memo authored by a ex- adviser to the BBC's content standards board. The adviser departed his role recently and has not spoken on the file, understood to have been leaked by a insider.

An extract released 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 Issues

The memo reportedly noted that the former adviser had expressed concerns about how BBC Arabic reported on the conflict in Gaza.

The newspaper said the adviser asserted there were "systemic problems", which had not been addressed by top executives. He supposedly cited "clear disparities" between the coverage of the war on BBC Arabic and on the primary BBC website.

One matter pointed out was the frequent use of analysts who were prejudiced against Jewish people or supportive of the militant group.

Censure of Trans Issues Reporting

The 19-page file is also reported to have criticised the BBC's handling of gender identity matters, saying the broadcaster had been "influenced by a small group of [staff] promoting the Stonewall view" of sexual identity issues and that its LGBT unit would "decline to cover any stories raising difficult questions".

It is said to have alleged that stories raising complex questions about transgender matters were downplayed, with a "constant drip-feed of one-sided stories celebrating the trans experience without adequate fairness or impartiality".

BBC Reply

In answer, the BBC said: "While we don’t comment on leaked documents, when the BBC receives feedback it takes it seriously and considers it carefully."

"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."