Apology Fuels Wider Fallout
The national broadcaster apologises to US President Donald Trump after Panorama producers stitched together parts of his 6 January 2021 speech. The edit wrongly implied Trump directly urged violent action. The 2024 programme will not air again.
Trump’s legal team threatens a $1bn lawsuit and demands a retraction, an apology, and compensation. The scandal prompts the resignations of Director General Tim Davie and News Chief Deborah Turness on Sunday. The broadcaster asks the White House for comment.
Second Questionable Edit Uncovered
The apology follows hours after the Daily Telegraph exposes another altered clip from a 2022 Newsnight episode.
In its “Corrections and Clarifications” section, the broadcaster says the Panorama programme was reviewed after public criticism. Trump’s lawyers set a Friday 22:00 GMT deadline for a response.
“We accept our edit unintentionally created the impression of a continuous section,” the statement says. Executives acknowledge the cut made it appear Trump issued a direct call to violence.
A spokesperson confirms that the organisation’s lawyers responded to Trump’s legal team. Chair Samir Shah also sent a personal letter to the White House expressing regret. The spokesperson adds: “We regret the edit, but we reject any basis for a defamation claim.”
Trump’s Words Revisited
Trump told supporters: “We’re going to walk down to the Capitol and cheer on our brave senators and congressmen and women.”
More than 50 minutes later he said: “And we fight. We fight like hell.”
The Panorama clip links these lines as one passage. Trump tells Fox News the edit “butchered” his remarks and “defrauded” viewers.
His lawyers demand a “full and fair retraction” and compensation. The broadcaster offers five reasons it denies wrongdoing.
Organisation Sets Out Its Case
First, the Panorama episode never aired in the US and was only available in the UK.
Second, Trump suffered no harm because he won re-election soon afterwards.
Third, the edit aimed to shorten a lengthy speech and lacked malicious intent.
Fourth, the disputed clip lasted twelve seconds within a one-hour programme that included supportive voices.
Fifth, political speech holds strong protection under US defamation law.
An insider says executives remain confident in their defence. The Culture Department declines to comment. Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey urges the prime minister to call Trump to protect the broadcaster’s independence.
Newsnight Draws Similar Criticism
A new allegation surfaces on Thursday. A 2022 Newsnight episode also appears to misrepresent Trump’s 6 January speech.
The edit shows Trump saying: “We’re going to walk down to the Capitol… And we fight. We fight like hell. And if you don’t fight like hell, you’re not going to have a country anymore.”
A voiceover then connects his words to footage from the Capitol riots.
Former White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney says the clip “spliced together” separate parts of the speech. He says the fighting line came much later in Trump’s remarks.
A spokesperson says the broadcaster upholds “the highest editorial standards” and is reviewing the issue. Trump’s legal team claims the broadcaster shows “a pattern of defamation.”
The row grows after the Telegraph publishes a leaked memo from a former external adviser. The document also criticises reporting on trans issues and the Arabic service’s coverage of the Israel-Gaza war.
