US President Donald Trump has said he has an “obligation” to sue the BBC over the way part of his speech was edited in the Panorama documentary.
Speaking to Fox News, he said his January 6, 2021 speech was “altered” and the way it was presented “deceived” viewers.
It is the first time Trump has spoken publicly on the issue since his lawyers wrote to the BBC and said he would sue for $1bn (£759m) in damages unless the corporation retracted, apologized and compensated him.
A BBC spokesman said: “We are reviewing the letter and will respond directly in due course.”
BBC chairman Samir Shah previously apologized for an “error in judgement” in the editing.
On Fox News Channel's “The Ingraham Angle,” the president was asked if he would pursue the lawsuit and responded, “Well, I guess I'll have to, you know, why not, because they deceived the public and admitted it.”
Trump continued: “They actually changed my speech on January 6th, which was a beautiful speech, a very calming speech, and they made it radical.
“And they really changed that. What they did was incredible.”
Asked again if he would pursue legal action, he replied: “Well, I think I have to do it because you can't get people to do it, you can't let people do it.”
The Fox News interview was recorded on Monday, although the section regarding the BBC was not published by Fox News until late Tuesday in the US.
The BBC received a letter from Trump's lawyers on Sunday. He is demanding a “full and fair retraction” of the documentary, an apology and for the BBC to “adequately compensate President Trump for the harm it has caused.”
It sets the deadline for the corporation to respond at 22:00 GMT (17:00 EST) Friday.
The BBC said it would respond in due course.
BBC News has contacted the BBC for comment on the President's latest remarks.
If Trump sues in Florida, he will also have to prove that the BBC Panorama documentary was available there. There is no evidence yet that it has been shown in the US.
Back in the White House, Trump made legal threats against other media outlets over their coverage of him. After receiving large payouts, he settled with CBS News and ABC News and attempted to sue the New York Times.
The BBC editorial appeared in the Panorama documentary, which aired in the days before the November 2024 US presidential election, but only attracted serious public scrutiny after the Daily Telegraph published a leaked internal BBC memo last week.
In a memo, a former independent external adviser to the BBC's Editorial Standards Committee expressed concern that part of the speech had been edited in a way that suggested the president had clearly encouraged the January 2021 Capitol riot.
Trump essentially said, “We are going to go down to the Capitol and cheer on our brave senators, congressmen and women.”
However, in the Panorama edit, two fragments of the speech, more than 50 minutes apart, were combined together.
He was shown saying, “We're going to go down to the Capitol… and I'll be there with you. And we fight. We fight like hell.”
The fallout led to the resignations of BBC director general Tim Davie and head of news Deborah Turness.
Both Outgoing senior leaders hit back at critics who said the episode raised wider questions about the BBC's impartiality.
Speaking at an internal all-staff meeting on Tuesday, Davie said: “We have made some mistakes that have cost us dearly, but we need to fight,” adding that “this story will not just be told by our enemies, it is our story.”
He said the BBC had been through “tough times… but it just does a good job and that speaks louder than any newspaper or any weapon.”
Neither Davy nor the BBC chairman mentioned Trump's legal threat during their address to staff on Tuesday.
Downing Street said it was a “BBC matter”.
“It is clear that the government is not in a position to comment on any ongoing legal matters,” the prime minister's spokesman said.
The row comes at a sensitive time for the BBC as its royal charter – the agreement underpinning its governance and funding arrangements – expires at the end of 2027.
Culture Minister Lisa Nandy will oversee negotiations on the terms of its extension. She reported to the House of Commons on Tuesday about these negotiations will “refresh its mission for the modern era” and ensure a “truly accountable” organization.
Nandy continued: “There is a fundamental difference between raising serious concerns about editorial errors and members of the House constantly attacking the organization itself, because the BBC is not just a broadcaster, it is a national institution that belongs to all of us.”
The culture committee is expected to hear evidence from senior BBC officials, including Shah and board members Sir Robbie Gibb and Caroline Thomson, in the coming weeks.
Former editorial standards adviser Michael Prescott, who authored the leaked memo that appeared in the Telegraph, will also be invited to give evidence.
Elsewhere, an internal Reform UK email seen by BBC News. confirmed that the party is ending cooperation with a documentary film commissioned by a television company about his rise.
The email said the film crew was given “unprecedented access” to senior party figures but must now withdraw consent to use any footage in connection with the Trump scandal.
Follow the twists and turns of Trump's second term with North America correspondent Anthony Zurcher's Weekly. US policy is not promoted newsletter. Readers in the UK can register here. Those outside the UK can register here.
