The former US president's official spokesperson has described the BBC as "completely fake news" and a "propaganda machine" in a forthright interview. This comes claims of bias at the network.
Senior Administration Figure Criticizes BBC Reporting
The White House official, a high-ranking representative in the Trump administration, stated that watching BBC news reports during visits to the UK "ruins" her day. She asserted that taxpayers are "forced to foot the bill for a leftist propaganda machine."
Controversy Over Altered Address
The spokesperson's statements came after MPs said the broadcaster had "serious questions to answer" regarding how a public address by the American leader was modified in a BBC Panorama documentary.
A document disclosed to a publication indicated that an installment of the news programme "thoroughly deceived" audiences by combining two parts of the speech together.
The broadcast depicted the leader saying he would march 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 talk where he advised 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: "Every time I journey 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 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 Production Problems
The newspaper said its reporting was based on a note authored by a former adviser to the BBC's content standards committee. The expert left his role earlier this year and has not spoken on the document, understood to have been leaked by a insider.
A passage published stated: ""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."
Claims of Widespread Problems
The memo reportedly noted that the ex-consultant had expressed worries about how BBC Arabic covered the war in Gaza.
The newspaper claimed the author alleged there were "institutional issues", which had not been resolved by top executives. He reportedly cited "clear disparities" between the coverage of the hostilities on BBC Arabic and on the main BBC site.
One matter highlighted was the repeated use of commentators who were prejudiced against Jewish people or pro-Hamas.
Censure of Trans Issues Coverage
The 19-page dossier is also said to have faulted 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 gender identity issues and that its LGBT unit would "decline to cover any stories raising difficult questions".
It is said to have claimed that stories posing complex questions about trans issues were suppressed, with a "steady stream of biased stories promoting the trans experience without adequate fairness or impartiality".
BBC Response
In answer, 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.|The ex-consultant previously advised a panel where varied perspectives on our reporting are regularly examined and contested."
