BBC reported on the afternoon of the 15th local time that US President Trump said on the 14th that he would sue BBC for $1 billion to $5 billion. Previously, the BBC's "Panorama" program maliciously edited a video of Trump's speech, making it appear as if he had incited the Capitol riot that day. BBC has apologized to Trump for this matter but refused to provide financial compensation to him.
The report stated that on the 14th, Trump told reporters on Air Force One: "We will sue them (BBC), and the amount we are claiming is between $1 billion and $5 billion, possibly at some point next week." In another interview, Trump also said he had a "duty" to sue BBC, explaining, "If you don't do it, you can't stop such things from happening to others."
The "such things" that Trump referred to were BBC's "Panorama" program maliciously editing Trump's speech video, splicing together his remarks that were nearly an hour apart into "Trump inciting the Capitol riot."
Previously, Trump's lawyers also stated that unless BBC retracted the report, apologized, and paid damages to Trump, they would sue BBC and claim $1 billion. On the 13th, BBC admitted to misleading editing in the "Panorama" program, apologized to Trump, and guaranteed that the program would not be broadcast again, but also rejected Trump's claim for damages.
Trump giving a speech BBC documentary screenshot
BBC also sent a letter to Trump's legal team, presenting five reasons why they believe the "Panorama" program did not constitute defamation. BBC argued that the program was only broadcast in the UK and not in the US; the program did not cause actual harm to Trump, as he was elected successfully shortly after the program aired; the way the clips were edited was not malicious, but rather to shorten Trump's lengthy speech; the clip should not be viewed in isolation, as other parts of the program also contained supportive voices for Trump; and opinions and expressions regarding public affairs in the US are protected by law.
However, under pressure from all sides, on the afternoon of November 9th local time, BBC's CEO Tim Davie and the Chief Executive Officer of the news department, Deborah Turness, resigned in disgrace.
The report also stated that as of the late evening of the 14th local time, records in the U.S. public court database showed that no one had actually filed the corresponding lawsuit. How the event will develop in the future remains to be observed.
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