US President Donald Trump says he feels an “obligation” to sue a British broadcaster for how it edited part of his 6 January 2021 speech in a documentary. He told Fox News the edit had “butchered” his words and “defrauded” the public. This marks his first public comment since his lawyers demanded $1 billion in damages unless the organisation retracts the programme, apologises, and pays compensation.
Trump accuses broadcaster of misleading the public
In an interview on The Ingraham Angle, Trump was asked whether he would follow through with legal action. “Well, I guess I have to,” he said. “They defrauded the public, and they’ve admitted it.” He called his speech “beautiful” and “calming,” insisting the edit made it sound radical. “They actually changed it,” he said. “What they did was rather incredible.”
Pressed again about the lawsuit, Trump replied: “I think I have an obligation to do it. You can’t allow people to do that.” The interview was recorded on Monday, but Fox News released the section concerning the British broadcaster only on Tuesday evening in the US.
Trump’s legal team sets firm deadline
The company received a letter from Trump’s lawyers on Sunday. It demands a full and fair retraction of the documentary, a public apology, and appropriate compensation for the damage caused. The letter gives a deadline of 22:00 GMT on Friday to respond. The broadcaster has said it will reply in due course, while journalists from its news division declined to comment on Trump’s new remarks.
A history of media disputes
Since returning to the White House, Trump has threatened legal action against several media outlets over their coverage. He reached settlements with CBS News and ABC News after large payouts and has pursued legal steps against The New York Times.
The controversy behind the edited documentary
The disputed edit appeared in a Panorama documentary aired shortly before the US presidential election in November 2024. It drew little attention until last week when The Daily Telegraph published a leaked internal memo. The memo, written by a former external adviser to the broadcaster’s editorial standards committee, raised concerns that the edit implied Trump had encouraged the Capitol riot of January 2021.
Trump had originally said: “We’re going to walk down to the Capitol, and we’re going to cheer on our brave senators and congressmen and women.” However, in the documentary, two separate moments from his speech—over 50 minutes apart—were combined. The broadcast version showed him saying: “We’re going to walk down to the Capitol… and I’ll be there with you. And we fight. We fight like hell.”
Resignations and internal backlash
The controversy led to the resignation of the organisation’s director general, Tim Davie, and head of news, Deborah Turness. Both leaders defended their record, saying the issue should not overshadow the broadcaster’s overall impartiality. During an internal staff meeting, Davie admitted mistakes but urged colleagues to “fight” for their credibility. “This narrative will not just be given by our enemies, it’s our narrative,” he said. He added that despite the turmoil, the organisation “does good work that speaks louder than any newspaper or weaponisation.”
Neither Davie nor the company’s chair mentioned Trump’s legal threat during that meeting.
Government distances itself from dispute
Downing Street described the matter as one for the broadcaster to handle. “It is clearly not for the government to comment on any ongoing legal matters,” the prime minister’s spokesperson said.
Debate over the future of the national institution
The row arrives at a critical moment as the broadcaster’s royal charter, which defines its governance and funding, expires at the end of 2027. Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy will lead the negotiations for its renewal. She told Parliament that the process would “renew its mission for the modern age” and ensure a “genuinely accountable” institution.
“There’s a fundamental difference between raising concerns over editorial failings and launching an attack on the institution itself,” she said. “This broadcaster isn’t just a media outlet; it’s a national institution that belongs to us all.”
Parliamentary hearings and growing scrutiny
The culture select committee plans to question senior figures from the organisation, including chair Samir Shah and board members Sir Robbie Gibb and Caroline Thomson. Michael Prescott, the former editorial adviser who wrote the leaked memo, will also be invited to testify.
Reform UK ends cooperation with documentary
In a separate development, an internal email from Reform UK confirmed the party will end its cooperation with a documentary about its rise. The message said the production team had received “unprecedented access” to senior party members but should now withdraw permission for any footage to be used, citing the ongoing Trump dispute.
