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Donald Trump's press secretary has described the BBC as "completely fake news" and a "propaganda machine" in a forthright interview. This comes allegations of partiality at the network.

Senior Administration Figure Condemns BBC Coverage

Karoline Leavitt, a senior representative in the Trump administration, remarked that viewing BBC bulletins during trips to the UK "spoils" her day. She claimed that the public are "forced to foot the bill for a leftist propaganda machine."

Dispute Over Altered Speech

The spokesperson's statements came after MPs said the corporation had "serious questions to answer" regarding how a public address by the US president was edited in a BBC Panorama program.

A document disclosed to a newspaper 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 march with his supporters to the Capitol ahead of the riots on 6 January 2021, urging them to "struggle intensely". Nevertheless, it omitted a section of the talk where he advised 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 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."

Leaked Document Highlights Production Issues

The newspaper reported its reporting was based on a note authored by a ex- adviser to the BBC's editorial guidelines board. The adviser left his role earlier this year and has not spoken on the file, believed to have been leaked by a whistleblower.

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."

Claims of Widespread Problems

The memo allegedly added that the ex-consultant had raised concerns 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 senior management. He reportedly cited "clear disparities" between the reporting of the hostilities on BBC Arabic and on the primary BBC website.

One issue highlighted was the repeated use of analysts who were antisemitic or pro-Hamas.

Criticism of Transgender Topics Coverage

The 19-page dossier is also said to have criticised the BBC's coverage of gender identity matters, saying the broadcaster had been "influenced by a small group of [staff] promoting the Stonewall view" of sexual identity issues and that its LGBT desk would "decline to cover any stories raising difficult questions".

It is said to have alleged that stories posing challenging questions about transgender matters were downplayed, with a "constant drip-feed of one-sided stories promoting the trans experience without adequate fairness or impartiality".

BBC Reply

In response, the BBC said: "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."