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The former US president's official spokesperson has characterized the BBC as "completely fake news" and a "biased media outlet" in a forthright discussion. This comes allegations of bias at the network.

White House Official Condemns BBC Coverage

Karoline Leavitt, a senior figure in the previous US government, remarked that watching BBC news reports during visits to the UK "ruins" her day. She claimed that taxpayers are "forced to foot the bill for a liberal propaganda machine."

Controversy Over Edited Speech

Leavitt's statements came after MPs 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 document disclosed to a newspaper suggested that an installment of the news programme "thoroughly deceived" audiences by combining two segments of the oration together.

The programme depicted the president saying he would walk with his followers to the Capitol ahead of the riots on 6 January 2021, encouraging them to "fight like hell". However, it excluded a section 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 added: "Whenever I travel to the United Kingdom with President Trump and am obliged 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 Document Emphasizes Editing Issues

The newspaper said its coverage was based on a note written by a ex- adviser to the BBC's editorial guidelines board. The adviser left his role recently and has not commented on the file, understood to have been leaked by a insider.

A passage published 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 report reportedly added that the ex-consultant had raised worries about how BBC Arabic covered the conflict in Gaza.

The outlet claimed the adviser asserted there were "systemic problems", which had not been resolved by top executives. He reportedly cited "clear disparities" between the coverage of the war on BBC Arabic and on the primary BBC site.

One issue highlighted was the frequent use of commentators who were antisemitic or supportive of the militant group.

Criticism of Transgender Topics Reporting

The lengthy file is also said to have faulted the BBC's coverage of gender identity matters, stating the broadcaster had been "captured by a small group of [staff] promoting the Stonewall view" of gender identity issues and that its LGBT desk would "refuse to cover any stories raising difficult questions".

It is reported to have claimed that stories raising challenging questions about trans issues were suppressed, with a "constant drip-feed of biased stories promoting the trans experience without adequate balance or impartiality".

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.|The ex-consultant previously advised a panel where varied perspectives on our reporting are regularly examined and contested."