US President Donald Trump took legal action against the BBC over its Panorama documentary edit.
According to Independent, the Republican president on Monday evening, December 15, filed a $10 billion defamation lawsuit against the BBC over his January 6, 2021 speech edits.
Some of the outlets reported that Trump is demanding $5 billion in damages.
It is also reported that the president has sought $5bn in damages each on two counts: defamation and violation of Florida’s Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act.
Trump’s legal team told the New York Times, “The formerly respected and now disgraced BBC defamed President Trump by intentionally, maliciously and deceptively doctoring his speech in a brazen attempt to interfere in the 2024 presidential election.”
This came after the 79-year-old, while talking to reporters in Washington DC, alleged the BBC of “putting terrible words in my mouth that I didn’t say” and suggested they “may have used AI.”
The American president said, “In a little while, you’ll be seeing I’m suing the BBC for putting words in my mouth. Literally, they put words in my mouth. They had me saying things I never said.
“They actually have me speaking with words that I never said, and they got caught because I believe somebody at the BBC said this is so bad, it has to be reported. Let’s call [it] fake news,” he added.
For the unversed, the chaos erupted last month after backlash on BBC for misleading edits of Trump’s January 6, 2021 speech in its Panorama documentary, which was aired a week before the 2024 elections.
Following the backlash, BBC Director-General Tim Davie and News CEO Deborah Turness stepped down from their positions, and the outlet sent a personal apology to Trump.
