Donald Trump has threatened to sue the BBC for $1bn over edits the organisation made last year to one of his speeches.
The organisation has been engulfed in a crisis, forced to apologise on Monday after two of its most senior figures, including the director-general, resigned on Sunday night.
The defamation claim centres around a BBC Panorama documentary, which aired October 2024 and showed an edited speech made by Mr Trump before the attack on the US Capitol on 6 January 2021, in which he appeared to tell his supporters he was going to walk with them to the US Capitol and “fight like hell”.
In a letter dated 9 November, Florida-based lawyer Alejandro Brito set the BBC a deadline of 10pm UK time on Friday to respond, outlining three demands:
• Issue a “full and fair retraction” of the documentary,
• Apologise immediately,
• “Appropriately compensate” the US president.
He told the BBC it needed to “comply” or face being sued for $1bn.
A BBC spokesperson said: “We will review the letter and respond directly in due course.”
‘Error of judgement’
On Monday, BBC chairman Samir Shah, one of the most senior figures still standing, apologised for the “error of judgement” in editing the video.
In a letter to the Culture, Media and Sport Committee of MPs, Mr Shah said Mr Trump’s speech was edited in a way that gave “the impression of a direct call for violent action”.
“The BBC would like to apologise for that error of judgement,” he added.
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Director-general and head of BBC News resign
Concerns about the edited speech first came to light in a leaked memo from Michael Prescott, a former journalist and independent adviser to the BBC’s Editorial Guidelines and Standards Board.
As a result, BBC director-general Tim Davie and BBC News chief Deborah Turness announced their resignations on Sunday evening, saying in emails to staff that mistakes had been made.
Mr Davie will address an all-staff meeting on Tuesday. While on her way into the Broadcasting House on Monday morning, Ms Turness defended the corporation, rejecting accusations of institutional bias.
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Downing St stands by BBC – but chancellor says ‘lessons to be learned’
A spokesperson for the prime minister told reporters on Monday that the BBC wasn’t corrupt or institutionally biased.
Instead, they said it had a “vital role” to play in the modern age, but needed to ensure it acted “to maintain trust and correct mistakes quickly when they occur”.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves also stood by the corporation, but said that “lessons do need to be learned”.
‘Nothing but an apology’
Veteran broadcaster and former BBC presenter Jonathan Dimbleby told Sky News, however, that the organisation owed the US president nothing more than an apology.
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But former legal correspondent for the BBC Joshua Rozenberg also told Sky News that he believed the corporation would “very likely” consider settling with Trump.
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Mr Trump’s attack on the BBC is the latest in a long string of multibillion-dollar battles he’s engaged with various media institutions.
