US President Donald Trump on Monday filed a lawsuit against the BBC, seeking $10 billion in damages. He accused the British public broadcaster of defamation and of engaging in deceptive and unfair trade practices.

The 33-page complaint alleges that the BBC aired a “false, defamatory, deceptive, disparaging, inflammatory, and malicious depiction of President Trump.” It described the broadcast as “a brazen attempt to interfere in and influence” the 2024 US presidential election.

The lawsuit was filed in a Florida court. It demands $5 billion in damages for defamation and another $5 billion for unfair trade practices.

Allegations over edited January 6 speech

According to the lawsuit, the BBC wrongly edited Trump’s January 6, 2021 speech. It accused the broadcaster of “splicing together two entirely separate parts of President Trump’s speech on January 6, 2021” to “intentionally misrepresent the meaning of what President Trump said.”

The speech was delivered shortly before some of Trump’s supporters stormed the US Capitol, as Congress was preparing to certify President-elect Joe Biden’s victory in the 2020 election. Trump has repeatedly and falsely claimed that the election was stolen from him.

Documentary aired before 2024 election

The BBC broadcast an hour-long documentary titled “Trump: A Second Chance?” just days before the 2024 US presidential election. The programme combined three quotes from two different sections of Trump’s January 6 speech, which were delivered almost an hour apart.

As edited, the quotes appeared as a single statement in which Trump urged supporters to march with him and “fight like hell.” The lawsuit says the edit removed a key section in which Trump said he wanted supporters to demonstrate peacefully.

Trump says words were put in his mouth

Earlier on Monday, Trump publicly confirmed that he was suing the BBC.

“I’m suing the BBC for putting words in my mouth,” he said during an appearance in the Oval Office.

“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 added. “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.”

BBC response and earlier apology

The BBC said it would contest the case in court.

“We are not going to make further comment on ongoing legal proceedings,” the broadcaster said in a statement.

Last month, the BBC apologized to Trump over the edit of the January 6 speech. However, the publicly funded broadcaster rejected claims that it had defamed him, even after Trump threatened legal action.

BBC chairman Samir Shah later described the edit as an “error of judgment.” The controversy led to the resignations of the BBC’s top executive and its head of news.

Legal hurdles and US jurisdiction questions

Trump filed the lawsuit in Florida after deadlines to bring the case in British courts had expired more than a year ago. Legal experts have noted possible challenges to pursuing the case in the United States, as the documentary was not broadcast there.

The lawsuit argues that people in the US can still access the BBC’s original content, including its “Panorama” series that carried the documentary, through the BritBox streaming service or by using virtual private network services.

About the BBC

The BBC, founded 103 years ago, is a national institution in the UK. It is funded by an annual licence fee of 174.50 pounds, or about $230, paid by households that watch live television or BBC content.

Under its charter, the BBC is required to remain impartial. Because of this role, it often faces strong criticism and scrutiny from both conservative and liberal audiences.