President Donald Trump sued the BBC on Monday for $10 billion in damages, claiming the British public broadcaster fraudulently defamed him in a 2024 documentary editing parts his speech on January 6, 2021.
In a 33-page complaint, Trump's lawyers asked a Miami federal court to hold a jury trial and said the BBC documentary, which aired a week before the 2024 presidential election, was a “blatant attempt to interfere and influence the outcome of the election to the detriment of President Trump.”
The companies named as defendants are the BBC and BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. and BBC Studios Productions Ltd. — co-producers of the documentary “Trump: Second Chance.”
Trump's lawyers argued that the BBC deliberately spliced together parts of his speech to supporters at the Ellipse in Washington, including part early in the speech when he urged them to march to the Capitol and part nearly 55 minutes later when he told them to “fight like hell.”
The lawsuit argued that the documentary is deceptive because it does not mention Trump encouraging his supporters to participate in peaceful protests when he said, “I know everyone here will soon be marching to the Capitol building to peacefully and patriotically make your voices heard.”
The BBC did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Monday evening.
Charles B. Tobin, a lawyer representing the BBC, said last month in a letter to Trump's lawyers included in Monday's filing that “our client did not intend to mislead anyone” and that the BBC had offered a public contrition, a personal apology to Trump sent by email and a retraction that appeared online.
BBC chairman Samir Shah previously admitted that the documentary's editing “gave the erroneous impression” that Trump was “directly calling for violent action” and apologized for “this error in judgment.”
Earlier on Monday, Trump announced the upcoming lawsuit, telling reporters in the Oval Office that he was suing the BBC “for putting words in my mouth.”
“They actually put in my mouth terrible words about Jan. 6 that I didn't say, and beautiful words that I said, yeah, beautiful words that talk about patriotism and all the good things that I said, they didn't say that,” he said.
Trump repeatedly threatened to sue BBC, saying after his election victory last year that he would seek $1 billion in damages.
Trump won this year when Paramount, the parent company of CBS News, said it would pay 16 million dollars to settle a lawsuit with Trump over his allegations that a “60 Minutes” interview last year with Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris was fraudulently edited.
ABC agreed last year. pay 15 million dollars as part of a legal settlement with Trump over defamation allegations against anchor George Stephanopoulos during an interview with Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C.
