Donald Trump's press secretary has characterized the BBC as "completely fake news" and a "biased media outlet" in a blunt interview. These remarks follow claims of bias at the broadcaster.
White House Official Condemns BBC Reporting
The White House official, a high-ranking figure in the Trump administration, remarked that watching BBC news reports during trips to the UK "spoils" her day. She claimed that the public are "compelled to foot the bill for a leftist propaganda machine."
Controversy 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 program.
A report disclosed to a publication indicated that an installment of the news programme "completely misled" viewers by combining two segments of the speech together.
The programme depicted the president saying he would walk with his followers to the Capitol prior to the disturbances on 6 January 2021, urging them to "struggle intensely". Nevertheless, it excluded a portion of the speech 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.”
The press secretary added: "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 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."
Disclosed Memo Emphasizes Production Problems
The newspaper said its coverage was based on a note written by a former adviser to the BBC's content standards board. The expert departed his role recently and has not spoken on the file, believed to have been revealed by a insider.
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 Widespread Problems
The memo allegedly noted that the former adviser had raised concerns about how BBC Arabic reported on the conflict in Gaza.
The newspaper claimed the adviser asserted there were "institutional issues", which had not been resolved by senior management. He reportedly cited "stark differences" between the coverage of the hostilities on BBC Arabic and on the primary BBC website.
One issue highlighted was the frequent use of commentators who were prejudiced against Jewish people or pro-Hamas.
Censure of Transgender Issues Reporting
The 19-page dossier is also reported to have faulted the BBC's coverage of gender identity matters, saying the broadcaster had been "influenced 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 said to have claimed that stories raising challenging questions about transgender matters were suppressed, with a "steady stream of biased stories celebrating the trans experience without adequate fairness or objectivity".
The Broadcaster Response
In response, the BBC said: "While we don’t comment on leaked documents, when the BBC receives feedback it takes it seriously and considers it carefully."
"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."
