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

White House Official Condemns BBC Coverage

Karoline Leavitt, a senior representative in the Trump administration, remarked that watching BBC bulletins during visits to the UK "ruins" her day. She asserted that taxpayers are "compelled to foot the bill for a leftist propaganda machine."

Controversy Over Altered Speech

The spokesperson's comments emerged after MPs said the broadcaster had "significant concerns to answer" regarding how a public address by the American leader was modified in a BBC Panorama documentary.

A document leaked to a publication suggested that an installment of the current affairs programme "thoroughly deceived" viewers by combining two parts of the speech together.

The broadcast showed the leader saying he would walk with his supporters to the Capitol ahead of the riots on 6 January 2021, encouraging them to "fight like hell". However, 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.”

Leavitt continued: "Every time I journey 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 Issues

The newspaper reported its coverage was based on a memo written by a former consultant to the BBC's editorial guidelines committee. The adviser left his position earlier this year and has not spoken on the document, believed to have been revealed by a whistleblower.

A passage published 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 Issues

The memo allegedly added that the former adviser had expressed worries about how BBC Arabic covered the war in Gaza.

The outlet said the author alleged there were "institutional issues", which had not been resolved by senior management. He supposedly cited "clear disparities" between the reporting of the war on BBC Arabic and on the main BBC site.

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

Criticism of Trans Topics Coverage

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

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

BBC Response

In answer, the BBC said: "Although we refrain from discussing disclosed papers, the BBC treats all input earnestly and reviews it thoroughly."

"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."