Donald Trump speaks to reporters on Air Force One on his way to his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida. (AP Photo) US President Donald Trump escalated his confrontation with the BBC on Friday, declaring that he plans to sue the UK broadcaster for up to $5 billion over what he calls a “cheated” and “misleadingly edited” clip of one of his past speeches.
The BBC has apologised for the edit but rejected Trump’s demand for compensation, insisting there is no basis for a defamation claim.
Speaking aboard Air Force One, Trump said he expected to file the lawsuit “some time next week,” adding, “They’ve even admitted that they cheated.” Earlier, he had suggested seeking damages of around $1 billion — a sum equal to roughly 13 per cent of the BBC’s annual income, which is largely funded by public licence fees.
Trump said he would likely sue the BBC for as much as $5 billion after the broadcaster admitted it wrongly edited a video of a speech he gave https://t.co/kOiH1I2RSF pic.twitter.com/H45AOV6fe3
— Reuters (@Reuters) November 15, 2025
The BBC has been in turmoil since a resurfaced clip from its flagship programme Panorama, aired ahead of the 2024 US presidential election, revealed an edited version of Trump’s remarks that appeared to cast him as encouraging “violent action” before the January 6 Capitol riot. The broadcaster apologised on Monday, acknowledging the edit created a misleading impression.
In his latest remarks, Trump claimed the incident had angered the British public and said he planned to raise the issue with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who has defended the BBC’s independence while avoiding direct confrontation with Washington. “He actually put a call into me. He’s very embarrassed,” Trump said.
Trump’s legal team earlier sent a letter accusing the BBC of damaging his reputation and demanded an apology and compensation by Friday. The corporation says its chairman, Samir Shah, wrote directly to the White House expressing regret for the edited clip — but maintains the situation does not amount to defamation.
The row has reignited long-running debates in the UK about impartiality in public broadcasting and comes at a sensitive time: negotiations over the BBC’s next Royal Charter, which governs how the corporation operates, are set to begin soon ahead of the charter’s expiry in 2027.
The fallout has already prompted the resignations of the BBC’s director-general and its top news executive. The broadcaster has also confirmed that it is reviewing a separate edit of another Trump speech related to the Capitol attack, which reportedly appeared on Newsnight in 2022.
Speaking to GB News on Friday, Trump said he felt “compelled” to pursue legal action. “This was so egregious,” he said. “If you don’t do it, you don’t stop it from happening again with other people.”
