Trump Says He Will Sue the BBC for Up to $5 Billion

Former U.S. President Donald Trump declared Thursday that he will file a “multibillion dollar” lawsuit against the BBC for broadcasting what he claims is a falsefully edited version of one of his past speeches, in response to the BBC admitting they published a piece of footage from that speech that showed a misleadingly edited combination of two parts of that speech.

The controversy surrounds a clip from Trump’s January 6, 2021 speech to the crowd of people gathered near the U.S. Capitol building aired during the BBC program “Panorama,” where two segments from the same speech were used to create the appearance that Trump immediately called upon his followers to march to the Capitol, followed by the quote, “We fight. We fight like hell.” However, the BBC has apologized for the editing and stated that the way it presented those two segments gave its viewers a false impression of Trump’s intentions; however, the BBC asserts that it did not commit defamation and therefore does not intend to compensate Trump in relation to this incident.

According to Trump, the lawsuit he is planning to file against the BBC could potentially cost the BBC anywhere from $1 to $5 billion, and he indicated that he expects to file the lawsuit within the coming week. Trump maintained that the BBC created the false impression by changing the way he spoke, and he said he feels compelled to pursue the matter legally.

The deadline for the BBC to retract the segment, formally apologize and reach some form of compensation agreement with Trump expired without meeting all three requirements. The BBC acknowledged there was an error and offered a formal expression of regret regarding the manner in which it had presented the clip, however, the BBC denied that it complied with the legal standard for defamation.

Growing turmoil inside the BBC

The controversy surrounding the BBC caused widespread shock within the organization, resulting in the resignation of Director-General Tim Davie and BBC News Chief Deborah Turness, both of whom stated their concern that the reaction to the incident may detract from the BBC’s ability to continue to maintain public trust. BBC Chairman Samir Shah reportedly wrote a private letter to the White House, stating that he regrets how the clip was edited, however, he continued to assert that there was no basis for Trump to initiate a defamation lawsuit.

Former BBC Director-General Tony Hall, who appeared on television, contended that the BBC should never provide compensation to a political figure, indicating that it would be improper for public money to be utilized in such a manner.

Also weighing in on the matter was British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who stated to Parliament that the BBC must adhere to the highest levels of accuracy, while simultaneously being responsive to errors once they occur. Starmer stated that he believes in the value of a strong and independent national broadcaster, despite the fact that the BBC is currently undergoing significant internal turmoil.

Starmer’s comments are documented in the official transcript of proceedings through Hansard. Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy indicated that she would examine political appointees to the BBC Board as part of the next charter process in light of concerns that the recent controversies have damaged public confidence in the BBC.

Trump indicates possible additional conversations with UK leaders

Trump reported that he has not as yet communicated directly with Starmer regarding the BBC controversy, but stated that the British prime minister has requested a call and that he intends to speak to Starmer over the weekend. Trump has successfully litigated against media organizations previously, most recently a recent settlement with Paramount after Trump alleged that CBS’s “60 Minutes” had produced an edited version of an interview conducted with then-Vice President Kamala Harris. Paramount publicly disclosed the resolution of the matter in July in a statement filed through its parent company’s press releases, which can still be accessed today via Paramount Global’s official newsroom.

Although the BBC has officially conceded that it will not air the video in question again and has issued a written correction explaining why the video was inaccurate, the consequences of the dispute continue to unfold as the corporation comes under scrutiny relative to its editorial practices, leadership structure and the extent to which it is accountable to the public. The controversy has generated increased discussion in the United Kingdom about the roles and responsibilities of publicly funded media institutions.