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Donald Trump's official spokesperson has characterized the BBC as "100% fake news" and a "propaganda machine" in a forthright discussion. This comes claims of bias at the broadcaster.

Senior Administration Figure Condemns BBC Coverage

The White House official, a senior representative in the previous US government, remarked that watching BBC news reports during visits to the UK "ruins" her day. She asserted that the public are "compelled to foot the bill for a leftist propaganda machine."

Controversy Over Edited Address

Leavitt's statements came after lawmakers said the corporation had "significant concerns to answer" regarding how a public address by the US president was modified in a BBC Panorama documentary.

A report leaked to a newspaper indicated that an installment of the current affairs programme "thoroughly deceived" viewers by splicing two parts of the speech together.

The programme showed the president saying he would walk with his followers 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 urged the crowd "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 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 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 Highlights Production Problems

The publication said its reporting was based on a memo authored by a former adviser to the BBC's editorial guidelines committee. The adviser departed his role earlier this year and has not commented on the document, believed to have been leaked by a whistleblower.

An extract published read: ""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 Systemic Problems

The memo allegedly added that the ex-consultant had raised worries about how BBC Arabic covered the war in Gaza.

The newspaper claimed the author asserted there were "systemic problems", which had not been resolved by senior management. He reportedly cited "clear disparities" between the reporting of the war on BBC Arabic and on the main BBC site.

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

Criticism of Transgender Topics Coverage

The 19-page file is also reported to have faulted 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 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 raising challenging questions about transgender matters were downplayed, with a "steady stream of one-sided stories celebrating the trans experience without adequate fairness or impartiality".

The Broadcaster Reply

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