On Thursday, November 13, the BBC president sent Donald Trump a “personal letter” apology, but the British media giant also denied it “legal basis” against a defamation complaint following the airing of a misleading montage of the American president’s speeches.
The apology comes ahead of the end of an ultimatum issued by Donald Trump’s lawyers, who in a letter on Sunday threatened to take legal action and demand damages of 1 billion dollars (860 million euros) from the British audiovisual group if he did not apologize.
The BBC, a true institution in the UK, has been in turmoil since the recent revelation that its flagship news magazine “Panorama” broadcast, just before the 2024 US presidential election, separate excerpts from a speech by Donald Trump – delivered in Washington, on January 6, 2021 – edited in such a way that he appeared to explicitly call on his supporters to attack the Capitol.
The affair prompted the resignations of BBC Director General Tim Davie and BBC News boss Deborah Turness on Sunday. The chairman of the public broadcaster’s board of directors, Samir Shah, the following day admitted a “misjudgment” in a letter to the British Parliament, but without apologizing to Donald Trump.
Ultimatum
The American president and his lawyers gave the BBC until Friday, 11 p.m. (Paris Times) to apologize and withdraw the documentary including the accused montage.
In a brief press release, the latter announced on Thursday evening that Samir Shah had done so “sent a private letter to the White House explaining to Donald Trump that he and his company apologized” to edit his speech. The British group also indicated that its lawyers had written a letter to the American president, but without disclosing the contents of the letter.
“While the BBC sincerely regrets the way these images were edited, we categorically deny that there is any legal basis for the defamation claim.”he still thinks so. He added that the “Panorama” documentary “Trump: A Second Chance” would no longer be rebroadcast on the group’s channels or platforms.
The American president, who has stepped up threats and legal action against American media, described BBC journalists as such “damaged” And “dishonest”before issuing his ultimatum.
Political and media pressure
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, despite being asked about the matter, on Wednesday refused to comment publicly on the threat of a legal attack. He just promised to do so “always defended a strong and independent BBC”while believing that he should “get your affairs in order”, “respect standards (quality) highest » And “fix errors quickly”. “In the age of disinformation, the demand for a neutral UK news service is stronger than ever”he insisted.
The BBC also said on Thursday that it was examining a second case of possible misleading editing of the same speech by Donald Trump, in the channel’s flagship program broadcast in 2022, two years before the broadcast of the “Panorama” program. “This matter has been brought to our attention and we are investigating it”reaction of a BBC spokesperson, following an article from TelegraphThursday, for that matter.
The controversy has sparked heated debate in the UK regarding the function of the BBC and its impartiality, while the group has been shaken in recent years by several controversies and scandals.
Last month, he was singled out again by Britain’s media regulator for doing just that “violates broadcasting regulations” with a report on Gaza in which the main narrator, a child, is the son of a senior official in the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas, unbeknownst to the viewer of this relationship.
