The former US president's press secretary has described the BBC as "100% fake news" and a "propaganda machine" in a forthright interview. These remarks follow claims of partiality at the broadcaster.
White House Official Criticizes BBC Coverage
The White House official, a senior figure in the previous US government, remarked that viewing BBC bulletins during trips to the UK "ruins" her day. She asserted that taxpayers are "compelled to foot the bill for a liberal propaganda machine."
Dispute Over Edited 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 document disclosed to a publication indicated that an installment of the current affairs programme "thoroughly deceived" viewers by splicing two segments of the speech together.
The programme depicted the president saying he would walk with his supporters to the Capitol ahead of the disturbances on January 6th, urging them to "struggle intensely". However, it omitted a portion of the talk where he advised 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 added: "Whenever 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."
Leaked Document Highlights Production Problems
The newspaper said its reporting was based on a memo authored by a ex- consultant to the BBC's content standards committee. The adviser departed his position earlier this year and has not commented on the file, believed to have been leaked by a whistleblower.
A passage 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."
Allegations of Systemic Issues
The report allegedly noted that the former adviser had expressed worries about how BBC Arabic reported on the war in Gaza.
The outlet said the author alleged there were "systemic problems", which had not been addressed by senior management. He supposedly cited "stark differences" between the coverage of the war on BBC Arabic and on the main BBC website.
One issue pointed out was the repeated use of analysts who were prejudiced against Jewish people or pro-Hamas.
Censure of Transgender Issues Reporting
The lengthy dossier is also reported to have criticised the BBC's coverage of gender identity matters, saying the network had been "influenced 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 challenging questions about transgender matters were downplayed, with a "constant drip-feed of biased stories celebrating the trans experience without adequate balance or objectivity".
The Broadcaster Reply
In response, the BBC said: "Although we refrain from discussing disclosed papers, the BBC treats all input earnestly and reviews it thoroughly."
"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."
