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BBC Apologizes to Trump for Misleading Edit, Rejects Defamation Claim

The broadcaster has withdrawn the Panorama program from future airings pending a review of a reported 2022 Newsnight edit.

Overview

  • BBC Chair Samir Shah sent a personal apology to the White House as the corporation issued a formal retraction over the Panorama sequence.
  • The BBC says it will not compensate President Trump and “strongly disagrees” there is any basis for a defamation claim, with lawyers replying to his team.
  • Trump’s attorneys demanded a retraction, apology and payment by Friday with a threat to sue for at least $1 billion if the deadline is missed.
  • The contested edit spliced lines spoken nearly an hour apart and omitted language urging peaceful protest in a film made by an external producer.
  • Director-General Tim Davie and news chief Deborah Turness resigned earlier this week, and the BBC is also examining a similar 2022 Newsnight clip as legal experts warn a lawsuit could face jurisdictional and substantive hurdles.