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Donald Trump's press secretary has characterized the BBC as "100% fake news" and a "biased media outlet" in a forthright discussion. These remarks follow claims of bias at the broadcaster.

Senior Administration Figure Criticizes BBC Coverage

The White House official, a senior figure in the previous US government, remarked 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."

Controversy Over Edited Speech

Leavitt's statements came after MPs said the broadcaster 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 current affairs programme "thoroughly deceived" audiences by splicing two segments of the speech together.

The broadcast showed the leader saying he would march with his supporters to the Capitol prior to the disturbances on 6 January 2021, urging them to "fight like hell". However, it excluded a portion of the speech where he advised the assembly "to peacefully and patriotically make your voices heard".

“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: "Every time I journey 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 Highlights Editing Issues

The publication said its coverage was based on a memo authored by a ex- adviser to the BBC's editorial guidelines committee. The expert departed his position earlier this year and has not spoken on the file, believed to have been leaked by a whistleblower.

An extract released 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."

Allegations of Systemic Issues

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

The outlet said the adviser asserted there were "institutional issues", which had not been addressed by top executives. He reportedly cited "stark differences" between the coverage of the hostilities on BBC Arabic and on the main BBC website.

One issue highlighted was the repeated use of commentators who were prejudiced against Jewish people or pro-Hamas.

Criticism of Transgender Issues Reporting

The lengthy file is also said to have criticised the BBC's handling of transgender issues, stating the network had been "captured 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 posing complex questions about trans issues were suppressed, with a "constant drip-feed of biased stories celebrating the trans experience without adequate balance or objectivity".

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