Trump Threatens Billion-Dollar Lawsuit Against BBC for Misleading Speech Edit

This is not the first time that Donald Trump is suing a news network.

US President Donald Trump indicated he felt an "obligation" to sue the BBC regarding a misleading speech edit, though he stopped short of formally announcing legal action during a Fox News interview broadcast on Tuesday.

According to a letter reviewed by AFP, Trump's legal team threatened the British broadcaster with a billion-dollar lawsuit on Monday. The BBC has apologized for creating the impression that the president had encouraged "violent action" before the 2021 US Capitol incident.

When asked during the Fox News interview, which was recorded Monday, if he planned to pursue legal action against the BBC, Trump responded: "I guess I have to, why not?"

In his first public remarks about the potential lawsuit, Trump stated, "I think I have an obligation to do it because you can't allow people to do that," though he did not confirm whether he had officially initiated proceedings for a defamation lawsuit.

"They defrauded the public and they've admitted it."

Trump noted that Britain "is supposedly one of our great allies," and added that "the government has a chunk of that one," referring to the BBC's public funding structure.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer's Labour government has been carefully balancing support for the publicly funded broadcaster's independence while avoiding appearing to oppose Trump directly.

The controversy has already led to significant changes at the BBC, with both the director general and the organization's top news executive resigning on Sunday.

The BBC has stated it would "review" the letter from Trump's legal team and has issued a public apology for the editing issue.

This dispute emerges at a politically sensitive period for the BBC, which is approaching negotiations for the renewal of its Royal Charter that governs the corporation's operations. The current charter is set to expire in 2027.

Since returning to power in January, Trump has been criticized for initiating numerous lawsuits that some claim are designed to suppress criticism in US media.

The BBC documentary featuring the edited Trump speech was aired last year.

The edit made it appear that Trump had told supporters he would walk to the US Capitol with them and "fight like hell," but omitted his statement during the same speech where he said: "We're going to cheer on our brave senators and congressmen and women."