Is always being vs has always been

[Alexey86]

Interviewer: And when later on the teaching side in your novel seemed to grow stronger than the entertaining side, were you working out these new ideas of mysticism and the divine ground for yourself in these books?
Huxley: My problem is always being, of course, to find, if possible, some kind of balance between the two sides.
(1.57 - 2.21)

I'm not sure whether Huxley says is always being or has always been. If the former, what's the difference in meaning between:

1) My problem is always being to find some kind of balance between the two sides.
2) My problem has always been to find some kind of balance between the two sides.

 

[Tarheel]

It's has always been.

 

[GoesStation]

As a native speaker, Huxley would never have used is always being there.

 

[Phaedrus]

Huxley is pronouncing been [bin] (cf. the word "bean"), which comes very close to sounding like "being" [biŋ].

In the United States, I and most other native speakers pronounce been [bɪn] (cf. the word "bin").

You can also hear the pronunciation [bɛn] (cf. the name "Ben"). All three pronunciations are listed in The Oxford English Dictionary (OED).

As for your mistaking Huxley's pronunciation of has for is, Alexey, the [h] has gone unpronounced, coming, as it does, right after [m] in rapid speech.

The only inaccuracy in hearing is your hearing the [æ] ("cat," "ban," "raft") in Huxley's has as [ɪ] ("is," "bit," "rim").