Trump Ups The Ante On Imminent BBC Lawsuit
President Donald Trump is threatening to sue the BBC for at least $1 billion, accusing the British broadcaster of defamation after it aired a misleadingly edited clip in its pre-election documentary, โTrump: A Second Chance?โ
The film, which aired ahead of the November 2024 election, includes footage from Trumpโs January 6, 2021 โStop the Stealโ rally, just before Congress certified Joe Bidenโs 2020 victory. The BBCโs version of Trumpโs remarks spliced together two separate parts of his speech to make it appear more inflammatory.
The documentary quoted Trump as saying:
โWeโre going to walk down to the Capitol, and Iโll be there with you. And we fight. We fight like hell.โ
However, in reality, Trumpโs words were more measured. He told supporters:
โWeโre going to walk down, and Iโll be there with you, weโre going to walk down, weโre going to walk down. Anyone you want, but I think right here, weโre going to walk down to the Capitol, and weโre going to cheer on our brave senators and congressmen and women, and weโre probably not going to be cheering so much for some of them. Because youโll never take back our country with weakness.โ
He continued:
โYou have to show strength, and you have to be strong. We have come to demand that Congress do the right thing and only count the electors who have been lawfully slated, lawfully slated.โ
Trump also explicitly called for peaceful protest, adding:
โI know that everyone here will soon be marching over to the Capitol building to peacefully and patriotically make your voices heard.โ
It wasnโt until about an hour later in his remarks that Trump said the second part of the BBCโs edited clip:
โAnd we fight. We fight like hell. And if you donโt fight like hell, youโre not going to have a country anymore.โ
BBC Leaders Step Down Amid Backlash
The controversy was first exposed by The Daily Telegraph, which published an internal BBC memo acknowledging the editing issue. Following the uproar, BBC Director-General Tim Davie and BBC News CEO Deborah Turness both resigned.
In a message to staff, Turness admitted that โmistakes have been madeโ but denied claims that the BBC is โinstitutionally biased.โ
Trumpโs Legal Response
Trumpโs attorney, Alejandro Britt, sent the BBC a legal letter demanding a full apology and retraction. The letter accuses the broadcaster of โdefrauding the publicโ and misrepresenting Trumpโs words to paint him in a negative light.
โWell, I guess I have to,โ Trump told Fox Newsโs Laura Ingraham on Tuesday, confirming his intent to sue. โWhy not? Because they defrauded the public, and theyโve admitted it.โ
A Pattern of Media Accountability
This is not the first time the President has successfully taken on major media outlets.
Last year, ABC News settled with Trump for $15 million after anchor George Stephanopoulos falsely claimed on-air that Trump was found civilly liable for rape in the E. Jean Carroll case. The jury had, in fact, found him liable only for sexual abuse.
In July 2024, Trump won another $16 million settlement from Paramount, following claims that a โ60 Minutesโ interview with Kamala Harris was heavily edited to favor her during the election season.
Trump also has an ongoing $10 billion lawsuit against The Wall Street Journal, accusing it of defamation after it published a supposed birthday note he allegedly wrote to Jeffrey Epsteinโa note Trump denies ever writing.













