BBC apologises to Trump over Panorama edit but refuses to pay compensation

The BBC apologized to US President Donald Trump for the Panorama episode in which parts of the speech were compiled, but rejected his demands for compensation.

The company also said it would not show the show again.

Trump’s lawyers have threatened to sue the BBC for $1 billion (£759 million) in damages unless the company recants, apologizes and pays him compensation.

Apology comes later a second clip edited in a similar mannerIt was revealed by the Daily Telegraph on Newsnight in 2022.

A BBC spokesman said: “The BBC’s lawyers have written to President Trump’s legal team in response to a letter received on Sunday.

“BBC president Samir Shah also sent a personal letter to the White House, making it clear to President Trump that he and the company were upset about the editing of the president’s speech on the program on January 6, 2021.

“The BBC has no plans to rebroadcast the documentary Trump: Second Chance on any BBC platform.

“Whilst the BBC sincerely regrets the way the video clip has been edited, we strongly disagree that there is any basis for a claim of defamation.”

In the Corrections and Clarifications sectionBroadcast on Thursday evening, the BBC said the Panorama program was being reviewed following criticism of how Trump’s speech was edited.

“During this sequence, we showed excerpts from different parts of the speech,” he said.

“However, we acknowledge that our editing inadvertently created the impression that we were showing a single portion of the speech throughout, rather than excerpts from different points of the speech, creating the false impression that President Trump was directly calling for violent action.”

In Trump’s speech on January 6, 2021, he said: “We will march to the Capitol and cheer on our brave senators, congressmen, and women.”

More than 50 minutes later, he said in his speech: “And we’re fighting. We’re fighting like crazy.”

During the Panorama show in 2024, the clip shows him saying: “We’re going to march to the Capitol… and I’ll be there with you. And we’re fighting. We’re fighting like hell.”

Speaking to Fox News, Trump said his speech on January 6, 2021 was “butchered” and the way it was delivered “defrauded” viewers.

The fallout from the scandal led to the resignations of BBC director general Tim Davie and chief news officer Deborah Turness.

The BBC received the letter from Trump’s lawyers on Sunday. It demands a “full and fair retraction” of the documentary, an apology and the BBC’s “appropriate compensation for the damage caused to President Trump”.

The company had a deadline of 22:00 GMT (17:00 EST) on Friday to respond.