The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) announced Tuesday it will aggressively fight the staggering $10 billion defamation lawsuit filed by US President Donald Trump concerning a 2024 documentary that allegedly edited his 2021 Capitol riot speech.
President Trump’s team filed the lawsuit in a Miami federal court, seeking a minimum of $5 billion for each of two separate counts, consequently placing the total claim at $10 billion against the broadcaster for alleged defamation and trade practice violations.
A BBC spokesperson confirmed their legal stance in a statement to AFP, stating directly, “As we have made clear previously, we will be defending this case.” Furthermore, the company maintained it would not offer “further comment on ongoing legal proceedings,” adhering to standard legal practice during these high-profile disputes.
Allegations of Malicious Doctoring
The crucial segment triggering the legal action spliced together two distinct parts of Mr. Trump’s January 6, 2021 speech, deliberately creating the false impression he explicitly urged supporters to attack the Capitol as lawmakers certified Joe Biden’s election victory.
Trump, now 79, publicly announced the impending lawsuit, vehemently claiming the BBC had “put words in my mouth,” even speculating they might have used “AI or something” to manipulate the audio.
A spokesperson for the former President’s legal team escalated the rhetoric, claiming the “formerly respected and now disgraced BBC defamed President Trump by intentionally, maliciously, and deceptively doctoring his speech in a brazen attempt to interfere in the 2024 Presidential Election.”
The statement further asserted, “The BBC has a long pattern of deceiving its audience in coverage of President Trump, all in service of its own leftist political agenda.”
Political Context and Resignations
While the BBC denies legal defamation, Chairman Samir Shah did send Mr. Trump a letter of apology acknowledging the error, a critical step in addressing the controversy.
Moreover, Shah informed a UK parliamentary committee last month the broadcaster should have acted more swiftly to recognize the internal mistake after a memo detailing the error leaked to The Daily Telegraph. The controversy surrounding the clip recently contributed to the resignations of the BBC Director General, Tim Davie, and the top news executive, Deborah Turness.
The lawsuit’s timing coincides with the UK government’s launch of a politically sensitive review concerning the BBC’s Royal Charter, which governs the corporation’s funding and operation.
Minister Stephen Kinnock emphasized the UK government “is a massive supporter of the BBC” immediately after the legal filing became public. Kinnock also insisted on Sky News that the BBC is “very clear that there is no case to answer in terms of Mr Trump’s accusation on the broader point of libel or defamation. I think it’s right the BBC stands firm on that point.” This lawsuit is the latest in a string of legal actions Mr. Trump has launched against various media companies in recent years.
