BBC Branded as "100% Fake News" by the Former President's Spokesperson

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 network.

Senior Administration Figure Criticizes BBC Coverage

Karoline Leavitt, a senior figure in the Trump administration, remarked that watching BBC news reports during trips to the UK "ruins" her day. She claimed that taxpayers are "forced to foot the bill for a liberal propaganda machine."

Dispute Over Altered Address

The spokesperson's statements came after lawmakers said the corporation had "serious questions to answer" regarding how a speech by the American leader was edited in a BBC Panorama documentary.

A report disclosed to a newspaper indicated that an installment of the news programme "completely misled" audiences by combining two segments of the oration together.

The broadcast showed the leader saying he would march with his supporters to the Capitol ahead of the riots on January 6th, urging them to "fight like hell". Nevertheless, it excluded a section of the talk where he urged the crowd "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: "Whenever I travel to the United Kingdom with President Trump and am forced 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."

Disclosed Memo Emphasizes Editing Issues

The publication reported its coverage was based on a note written by a former consultant to the BBC's editorial guidelines board. The expert left his role earlier this year and has not spoken on the file, understood to have been revealed by a whistleblower.

An extract published 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 Widespread Problems

The report allegedly noted that the former adviser had expressed concerns about how BBC Arabic reported on the war in Gaza.

The newspaper claimed the adviser alleged there were "systemic problems", 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 main BBC site.

One matter highlighted was the repeated use of analysts who were antisemitic or pro-Hamas.

Censure of Transgender Issues Reporting

The 19-page file is also said to have criticised the BBC's coverage of transgender issues, saying the broadcaster 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 said to have alleged that stories posing challenging questions about transgender matters were suppressed, with a "steady stream of biased stories celebrating the trans experience without adequate fairness or impartiality".

BBC Reply

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.|He previously advised a panel where varied perspectives on our reporting are regularly examined and contested."