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Donald Trump's press secretary has characterized the BBC as "completely fake news" and a "biased media outlet" in a forthright discussion. These remarks follow allegations of bias at the broadcaster.

White House Official Condemns BBC Coverage

The White House official, a senior figure in the Trump administration, stated that viewing BBC news reports during visits to the UK "spoils" her day. She claimed that taxpayers are "compelled to foot the bill for a leftist propaganda machine."

Dispute Over Altered Speech

The spokesperson's statements came after lawmakers said the broadcaster had "serious questions to answer" regarding how a speech by the American leader was modified in a BBC Panorama documentary.

A report leaked to a newspaper suggested that an episode of the news programme "thoroughly deceived" audiences by splicing two parts of the oration together.

The programme showed the leader saying he would walk with his followers to the Capitol prior to the riots on 6 January 2021, encouraging them to "fight like hell". However, it excluded a portion 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.”

Leavitt added: "Whenever I travel 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 newspaper said its reporting was based on a note authored by a former consultant to the BBC's editorial guidelines board. The expert left his role earlier this year and has not commented on the document, believed to have been leaked by a insider.

An extract released 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 Widespread Problems

The memo allegedly noted that the former adviser had raised concerns about how BBC Arabic reported on the war in Gaza.

The outlet said the adviser alleged there were "institutional issues", 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 issue highlighted was the repeated use of analysts who were prejudiced against Jewish people or supportive of the militant group.

Criticism of Trans Issues Coverage

The 19-page file is also reported to have criticised the BBC's coverage of gender identity matters, stating 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 "decline to cover any stories raising difficult questions".

It is reported to have alleged that stories raising challenging questions about trans issues were suppressed, with a "steady stream of biased stories promoting the trans experience without adequate fairness or objectivity".

BBC Reply

In response, the BBC stated: "While we don’t comment on leaked documents, when the BBC receives feedback it takes it seriously and considers it carefully."

"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."