Photo Credit; Getty Images
President Donald Trump has filed a sweeping $10 billion defamation lawsuit against the BBC, accusing the British broadcaster of deceptively editing his Jan. 6, 2021, speech in a documentary aired ahead of the 2024 U.S. presidential election.
The complaint, filed Monday in federal court in Miami, alleges that a BBC "Panorama" documentary titled Trump: A Second Chance misrepresented Trump's remarks by stitching together nonconsecutive portions of his speech to falsely suggest he encouraged violence. Trump's legal team argues the edits amounted to election interference and caused significant reputational harm.
According to the lawsuit, the documentary combined Trump's early call for supporters to march to the Capitol with a statement made nearly an hour later in which he urged them to "fight like hell," while omitting his instruction to protest "peacefully and patriotically." His attorneys contend that the editing created a misleading narrative that portrayed Trump as directly inciting the Capitol riot.
Trump announced the legal action earlier Monday, telling reporters that the BBC had "put words in my mouth" while excluding what he described as his calls for calm and patriotism. He has repeatedly criticized the broadcaster since the documentary aired, previously threatening to pursue legal remedies.
The BBC, BBC Studios Distribution Ltd., and BBC Studios Productions Ltd. are named as defendants. The broadcaster did not immediately respond to requests for comment following the filing. However, correspondence included in the lawsuit shows the BBC previously acknowledged that the documentary's editing gave a "mistaken impression" and issued an apology, along with an online correction and a personal message to Trump.
BBC Chair Samir Shah has said the edit reflected an "error of judgment" but maintained that the organization did not intend to mislead viewers. Trump's lawsuit asserts that those steps were insufficient and seeks both compensatory and punitive damages, as well as a jury trial.
The filing also argues that U.S. courts have jurisdiction because the BBC conducts substantial business in Florida through digital platforms, streaming services, and on-location filming at Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate.
The case adds to Trump's growing list of defamation battles with major media outlets. In recent years, he has pursued high-profile lawsuits against several U.S. networks, some of which resulted in multimillion-dollar settlements.
