The former US president's press secretary has described the BBC as "completely fake news" and a "propaganda machine" in a blunt discussion. These remarks follow allegations of partiality at the broadcaster.
Senior Administration Figure Criticizes BBC Coverage
The White House official, a senior representative in the previous US government, stated that watching BBC news reports during visits to the UK "ruins" her day. She claimed that taxpayers are "compelled to foot the bill for a leftist propaganda machine."
Controversy Over Edited Speech
The spokesperson's comments emerged after lawmakers said the broadcaster had "serious questions to answer" regarding how a speech by the American leader was modified in a BBC Panorama program.
A report disclosed to a newspaper indicated that an episode of the news programme "completely misled" viewers by combining two segments of the oration together.
The programme depicted the president saying he would walk with his supporters to the Capitol ahead of the disturbances on 6 January 2021, urging them to "struggle intensely". Nevertheless, it excluded a portion of the talk where he advised the crowd "to peacefully and patriotically make your voices heard".
“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 mars 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 Highlights Editing Issues
The newspaper reported its reporting was based on a note authored by a ex- consultant to the BBC's content standards committee. The expert departed his role earlier this year and has not commented on the file, understood to have been leaked by a whistleblower.
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."
Claims of Systemic Problems
The memo reportedly added that the ex-consultant had expressed worries about how BBC Arabic covered the war in Gaza.
The outlet said the author asserted there were "institutional issues", which had not been resolved by top executives. He supposedly cited "stark differences" between the coverage of the war on BBC Arabic and on the primary BBC website.
One matter highlighted was the frequent use of analysts who were antisemitic or supportive of the militant group.
Criticism of Transgender Issues Reporting
The lengthy dossier is also reported to have faulted 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 sexual identity issues and that its LGBT unit would "refuse to cover any stories raising difficult questions".
It is reported to have alleged that stories raising complex questions about transgender matters were downplayed, with a "constant drip-feed of one-sided stories promoting the trans experience without adequate balance or objectivity".
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."
