Donald Trump has filed a $10 billion (€8.5 billion) lawsuit against the BBC, alleging the broadcaster defamed him by editing his 2021 speech to supporters ahead of the U.S. Capitol riot and violating Florida consumer protection law.
The complaint, filed in federal court in Miami, seeks damages “in an amount not less than $5,000,000,000” for each of two counts: defamation and violation of the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act. Trump previously signaled the suit was imminent, accusing the BBC of having “put words in my mouth,” even suggesting “they used AI or something.”
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At the center of the case is a BBC Panorama documentary that aired last year, shortly before the 2024 election. Trump’s legal team alleges the program doctored his Jan. 6, 2021, remarks in a “brazen attempt to interfere” with the vote.
“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,” a spokesperson for Trump’s legal team said. The statement also accused the BBC of a “long pattern of deceiving its audience” in its coverage of Trump.
The BBC has denied Trump’s claim of legal defamation, but the broadcaster’s chairman, Samir Shah, sent Trump a letter of apology, according to the filing. Shah also told a U.K. parliamentary committee last month that the BBC should have acted sooner to acknowledge its error after a memo disclosing the issue was leaked to The Daily Telegraph.
The controversy reignited last month after a media report drew fresh attention to the edited clip. The fallout triggered a period of turmoil inside the broadcaster that culminated in the resignations of BBC Director-General Tim Davie and head of news Deborah Turness.
In court papers, Trump’s lawyers say the edited segment was “fabricated and aired by the defendants one week before the 2024 Presidential Election” and that the alleged manipulation was intended to harm his candidacy. The suit contends the conduct meets the bar for punitive damages under Florida law.
Panorama is the BBC’s flagship current affairs program and airs to an audience that extends far beyond the United Kingdom, giving the broadcaster’s editorial decisions sweeping global reach.
Trump’s filing is the latest in a series of legal actions he has taken against media companies in recent years, several of which have led to multimillion-dollar settlements. The BBC case escalates the former president’s long-running battle with major news organizations over coverage he says distorts his words and record.
Beyond the legal and political stakes, the dispute deepens questions about editorial standards at one of the world’s most influential public broadcasters. While the BBC has apologized for its handling of the clip and acknowledged it should have responded more quickly to the internal warning, it maintains its journalism did not meet the legal threshold for defamation.
The BBC did not immediately announce a legal response to the filing. A court timeline for initial proceedings was not available.
By Abdiwahab Ahmed
Axadle Times international–Monitoring.
