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

White House Official Condemns BBC Coverage

Karoline Leavitt, a senior figure in the Trump administration, remarked that watching BBC bulletins during visits to the UK "spoils" her day. She claimed that the public are "compelled to foot the bill for a leftist propaganda machine."

Controversy Over Altered Speech

The spokesperson's comments emerged after lawmakers said the corporation had "significant concerns to answer" regarding how a speech by the American leader was edited in a BBC Panorama documentary.

A report leaked to a publication indicated that an installment of the current affairs programme "thoroughly deceived" viewers by combining two segments of the oration together.

The programme showed the leader saying he would march with his followers to the Capitol ahead of the disturbances on January 6th, encouraging them to "struggle intensely". However, it omitted a portion of the speech where he advised the crowd "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 continued: "Whenever I travel 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 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."

Leaked Memo Emphasizes Production Problems

The newspaper said its coverage was based on a note written by a former adviser to the BBC's content standards committee. The adviser departed his position recently and has not spoken on the document, believed to have been leaked by a insider.

A passage 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 expressed concerns about how BBC Arabic reported on the conflict in Gaza.

The newspaper said the adviser alleged 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 main BBC site.

One matter pointed out was the frequent use of commentators who were prejudiced against Jewish people or supportive of the militant group.

Censure of Transgender Issues Reporting

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

It is reported to have alleged that stories posing complex questions about transgender matters were downplayed, with a "steady stream of biased stories celebrating the trans experience without adequate balance or objectivity".

BBC Reply

In response, the BBC stated: "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."