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The former US president's press secretary has described the BBC as "completely fake news" and a "propaganda machine" in a forthright discussion. This comes allegations of bias at the network.

Senior Administration Figure Condemns BBC Reporting

Karoline Leavitt, a high-ranking representative in the previous US government, stated that watching BBC bulletins during trips to the UK "ruins" her day. She claimed that the public are "forced to foot the bill for a liberal propaganda machine."

Controversy Over Altered Address

Leavitt's statements came after lawmakers said the corporation had "serious questions to answer" regarding how a speech by the US president was edited in a BBC Panorama program.

A document disclosed to a publication indicated that an episode of the news programme "completely misled" audiences by splicing two segments of the oration together.

The programme depicted the president saying he would walk with his followers to the Capitol ahead of the disturbances on January 6th, urging them to "fight like hell". Nevertheless, it excluded a portion of the talk where he advised the assembly "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 continued: "Every time I travel to the United Kingdom with President Trump and am forced to watch the BBC in our hotel rooms, it ruins 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."

Disclosed Memo Highlights Editing Problems

The newspaper said its coverage was based on a memo authored by a former consultant to the BBC's editorial guidelines board. The expert departed his position recently and has not commented on the document, believed to have been revealed 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 Systemic Problems

The memo reportedly noted that the ex-consultant had raised worries about how BBC Arabic reported on 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 issue highlighted was the repeated use of commentators who were antisemitic or pro-Hamas.

Criticism of Trans Topics Reporting

The lengthy file is also said to have faulted the BBC's handling of gender identity matters, saying the broadcaster had been "captured 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 said to have claimed that stories raising complex questions about transgender matters were downplayed, with a "steady stream of one-sided stories celebrating the trans experience without adequate balance or impartiality".

BBC Reply

In answer, 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."