US President Donald Trump said he was ”obligated” to sue the BBC because ”they deceived viewers and admitted they did”. In an interview with Fox News, Trump claimed that BBC editing made a “beautiful” and “very sobering” speech “radical”, which was “unbelievable” and “very dishonest”.
Trump’s reference was to the speech he delivered to his supporters before the riots at the US Capitol on January 6 2021.
Trump’s threat
The tycoon threatened to file a billion dollar lawsuit against the BBC. According to a report by NBC News, which obtained a copy of the letter sent by Trump’s lawyers, the BBC has until Friday November 14 at 23:00 Italian time to “comply” with the president’s requests, including a formal retraction. “Otherwise, – the letter says – President Trump will have no choice but to assert his legal and equitable rights, all of which are expressly protected by law, including through legal action for damages of no less than $1,000,000,000. The BBC has been notified.”
Programs targeted by the White House showed Trump saying he would accompany his supporters to the Capitol before the riot on January 6, 2021, urging them to “fight like hell,” but omitting the part of his speech that urged them to “make their voices heard in peaceful and patriotic ways.”
CEO Resignation and CEO News
The BBC’s director general, Tim Davie, and News CEO, Deborah Turness, have resigned. The report, the BBC said, was produced by Michael Prescott, a former editorial guidelines and standards committee consultant who left his post at the start of the year.
