Trump threatens multibillion-dollar lawsuit against BBC over edited speech

US President Donald Trump says he plans to sue the BBC for up to $5bn, accusing the broadcaster of altering his words in a Panorama documentary about his 6 January 2021 speech.

Speaking aboard Air Force One on Friday, Trump said legal action would likely be filed next week.

“They cheated. They changed the words coming out of my mouth,” he told reporters.

The BBC has apologised for an edit that gave “the mistaken impression” Trump directly urged supporters toward violent action, but it has rejected his demand for financial compensation.

The programme will not be re-aired.

Trump’s lawyers had earlier threatened a $1bn lawsuit unless the BBC retracted the clip, apologised and paid damages. Court records show no case has yet been filed in Florida.

The Panorama documentary spliced together lines spoken 50 minutes apart, making it appear Trump said: “We’re going to walk down to the Capitol… And we fight. We fight like hell.”

The edit has triggered the resignations of BBC director general Tim Davie and head of news Deborah Turness.

In a detailed reply to Trump’s legal team, the BBC argued there is no basis for defamation, saying the edit was unintentional, not malicious, and carried minimal harm citing Trump’s subsequent re-election.

It also noted the programme did not air in the US.

A second similarly edited clip, from a 2022 Newsnight broadcast, emerged hours before the BBC issued its apology.

Trump said he felt an “obligation” to sue, warning that without legal action such incidents would continue. Agencies