Trump hits BBC with $1 billion lawsuit threat over edited footage

The U.S. president has threatened to sue the BBC for $1 billion over a edited video broadcast on Panorama, which caused a public relations crisis for the network and led to the resignation of two senior executives.

Trump’s legal team, in a letter sent to the BBC, demanded the removal of “false, defamatory, disparaging, misleading, and inflammatory” statements included in the Panorama documentary, which aired one week before the 2024 U.S. presidential election.

The letter, written by Alejandro Brito, Trump’s lawyer, gives the BBC until next Friday to “fully and fairly” remove the documentary and appropriately compensate Trump for the alleged harm, or face legal action in the state of Florida, U.S.A.

A BBC spokesperson said the network is reviewing the letter and will respond directly in due course.

Despite the legal threat, Trump may face challenges in proving defamation in the U.S., where the First Amendment provides broad protections for freedom of speech.

Tim Davie, Director-General of the BBC, resigned following criticism that a Panorama documentary had misled viewers by editing Trump’s speech.

Meanwhile, Deborah Turness, Head of News at the network, also stepped down over the issue.

The resignations of Davie and Turness, related to the misediting of Donald Trump’s 2021 speech, raise several concerning questions.

The Trump controversy originated from a Panorama documentary titled “Trump: A Second Chance?” which aired one week before the 2024 U.S. presidential election and included segments of Trump’s speech delivered to his supporters just before the January 6, 2021, Washington insurrection.