The former US president's press secretary has described the BBC as "completely fake news" and a "propaganda machine" in a forthright discussion. These remarks follow allegations of partiality at the broadcaster.
Senior Administration Figure Condemns BBC Coverage
The White House official, a high-ranking representative in the previous US government, stated that watching BBC bulletins during visits to the UK "ruins" her day. She asserted that taxpayers are "compelled to foot the bill for a liberal propaganda machine."
Dispute Over Altered Address
The spokesperson's statements emerged after MPs said the broadcaster had "serious questions to answer" regarding how a speech by the US president was modified in a BBC Panorama program.
A document leaked to a newspaper indicated that an installment of the news programme "thoroughly deceived" viewers by splicing two parts of the oration together.
The programme depicted the leader saying he would walk with his supporters to the Capitol prior to the disturbances on January 6th, encouraging them to "fight like hell". Nevertheless, it omitted a section of the talk where he urged the assembly "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 travel to the United Kingdom with President Trump and am obliged 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."
Leaked Document Emphasizes Editing Problems
The newspaper reported its reporting was based on a note written by a former adviser to the BBC's content standards board. The adviser left his role recently and has not spoken on the file, understood to have been leaked by a insider.
A passage published 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."
Claims of Widespread Problems
The report allegedly noted that the former adviser had expressed concerns about how BBC Arabic reported on the conflict in Gaza.
The outlet said the adviser asserted there were "institutional issues", which had not been addressed by top executives. He reportedly cited "clear disparities" between the reporting of the war on BBC Arabic and on the main BBC site.
One issue highlighted was the frequent use of commentators who were prejudiced against Jewish people or supportive of the militant group.
Criticism of Trans Issues Reporting
The lengthy dossier is also reported to have criticised the BBC's handling of gender identity matters, saying the network had been "captured by a small group of [staff] promoting the Stonewall view" of gender identity issues and that its LGBT unit would "decline to cover any stories raising difficult questions".
It is reported to have alleged that stories posing challenging questions about trans issues were suppressed, with a "constant drip-feed of one-sided stories celebrating the trans experience without adequate fairness or objectivity".
The Broadcaster Response
In response, 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."
