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Donald Trump's press secretary has described 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 Condemns BBC Reporting

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

Dispute Over Edited Address

Leavitt's comments came after lawmakers said the broadcaster had "serious questions to answer" regarding how a speech by the American leader was edited in a BBC Panorama program.

A document leaked to a newspaper indicated that an installment of the news programme "thoroughly deceived" audiences by combining two segments of the oration together.

The broadcast showed the leader saying he would walk with his followers to the Capitol ahead of the disturbances on 6 January 2021, urging them to "fight like hell". However, it omitted a portion of the talk where he urged the assembly "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 journey 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 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."

Disclosed Memo Highlights Production Problems

The publication reported its coverage was based on a note written by a former adviser to the BBC's editorial guidelines committee. The expert departed his position earlier this year and has not spoken on the document, believed to have been leaked by a insider.

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 Issues

The report reportedly added that the ex-consultant had raised worries about how BBC Arabic reported on the conflict in Gaza.

The newspaper said the adviser alleged there were "systemic problems", which had not been addressed by top executives. He supposedly cited "clear disparities" between the coverage of the war on BBC Arabic and on the main BBC site.

One issue highlighted was the repeated use of analysts who were prejudiced against Jewish people or supportive of the militant group.

Censure of Trans Issues Coverage

The lengthy dossier is also reported to have faulted the BBC's coverage of transgender issues, saying the network had been "influenced 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 reported to have claimed that stories posing complex questions about trans issues were downplayed, with a "steady stream of biased stories promoting the trans experience without adequate fairness or impartiality".

The Broadcaster Reply

In answer, 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."