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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 blunt interview. These remarks follow claims of bias at the network.

Senior Administration Figure Condemns BBC Reporting

The White House official, a senior representative in the Trump administration, stated that viewing BBC bulletins during visits to the UK "ruins" her day. She claimed that taxpayers are "compelled to foot the bill for a leftist propaganda machine."

Dispute Over Edited Speech

Leavitt's statements emerged after lawmakers said the broadcaster had "significant concerns to answer" regarding how a speech by the US president was edited in a BBC Panorama documentary.

A document disclosed to a newspaper indicated that an episode of the news programme "completely misled" audiences by splicing two parts of the speech together.

The programme showed the leader saying he would march with his supporters to the Capitol ahead of the disturbances on 6 January 2021, urging them to "fight like hell". Nevertheless, 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.”

Leavitt added: "Every time I travel to the United Kingdom with President Trump and am obliged to watch the BBC in our hotel rooms, it ruins 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 Memo Emphasizes Production Issues

The publication reported its coverage was based on a memo authored by a former consultant to the BBC's editorial guidelines board. The adviser left his position earlier this year and has not commented on the file, understood to have been leaked by a whistleblower.

A passage published stated: ""Editing the footage as Panorama broadcast it was utterly deceptive. The absence of a direct call for supporters to march and battle at Capitol Hill partly explained why no federal incitement charges were filed."

Allegations of Widespread Issues

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

The outlet said the adviser alleged there were "institutional issues", which had not been addressed by senior management. He supposedly cited "stark differences" between the reporting of the war on BBC Arabic and on the main BBC website.

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

Censure of Trans Topics Coverage

The lengthy dossier 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 sexual identity issues and that its LGBT unit would "decline to cover any stories raising difficult questions".

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

BBC Response

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.|He previously advised a panel where varied perspectives on our reporting are regularly examined and contested."