Former President Donald Trump has filed a Sh1.5 trillion ($10 billion) lawsuit against the BBC, alleging defamation and deceptive practices over the broadcaster’s edit of his January 6, 2021, speech.
According to AFP, the 33-page lawsuit, filed Monday in a Florida court, accuses the British broadcaster of creating a “false, defamatory, deceptive, disparaging, inflammatory, and malicious depiction of President Trump,” calling it “a brazen attempt to interfere in and influence” the 2024 U.S. presidential election.
It claims the BBC “spliced together two entirely separate parts” of Trump’s speech to misrepresent his words.
Trump’s suit seeks Sh750 billion ($5 billion) in damages for defamation and Sh750 billion ($5 billion) for unfair trade practices.
The BBC said it would defend itself, stating: “We are not going to make further comment on ongoing legal proceedings.”
Last month, the broadcaster apologised to Trump over the edits but rejected claims of defamation after Trump threatened legal action.
Chairman Samir Shah called the incident “an error of judgment,” which led to the resignations of the broadcaster’s top executive and head of news.
The controversy stems from the documentary Trump: A Second Chance?, which aired days before the 2024 U.S. presidential election.
It spliced three quotes from two sections of Trump’s 2021 speech, delivered almost an hour apart, into one quote in which Trump appeared to urge supporters to “fight like hell.”
Parts showing Trump advocating peaceful demonstrations were omitted.
“They actually put terrible words in my mouth having to do with Jan. 6 that I didn’t say, and they’re beautiful words that I said, right?” Trump said during an Oval Office appearance.
“They’re beautiful words, talking about patriotism and all of the good things that I said. They didn’t say that, but they put terrible words.”
Legal experts have noted potential challenges for the U.S. case, since the documentary was not broadcast in the United States.
The lawsuit argues that Americans could access the BBC content via the subscription service BritBox or virtual private network (VPN) tools.