US President Donald Trump says he has an “obligation” to complain to the BBC about how a section of his speech was edited in the Panorama documentary.
Speaking to Fox News, he said that his 6 speech 2021 “killed” and how it was presented “deceived” viewers.
It is the first time Trump has spoken publicly since his lawyers wrote to the BBC and said he would sue for $1bn (£759m) in damages unless the corporation issues a retraction, apologizes and compensates him.
BBC Chairman Samir Shah previously apologized for an “error in judgement” in the editing.
Appearing on Fox News’s The Sngraham angle, the President was asked if he would go ahead with the case, answering “that I know, because they don’t recognize the public, and they admit it”.
Trump continued: “They changed my speech on January 6th into a beautiful speech, which was a calming speech, and they made it sound radical.
“And they changed it. What they did was amazing.”
Asked again if he would pursue legal action, he said: “Then I think I have an obligation to do it, because you can’t make people, you can’t make people do it.”
The BBC received the letter from Trump’s lawyers on Sunday. It demanded a “full and fair retraction” of the documentary, an apology, and that the BBC “properly compensate President Trump for the damage caused”.
It set a deadline of 22:00 GMT (17:00 Est) on Friday for the corporation to respond.
The BBC said it would respond in the appropriate course.
BBC News has contacted the BBC for comment on the President’s latest comments.
Since returning to the White House, Trump has made legal threats against other media outlets for their coverage of him. He settled with CBS News and ABC News after receiving several payments, and intends to take legal action against the New York Times.
The BBC editing shows the panorama documentary focused on the days before the US presidential election in November 2024, but destroyed Public Scrutiny of the Daily Telegraph Memo published in the Daily Telegraph Memo published in the Daily Telegraph Newpepaper last week.
In the memo, a former independent extister outside the BBC’s editorial standards is concerned about being edited in a section proposed by Riot in the Capitol in January 2021.
Trump truly said: “We’re going to walk to the Capitol, and we’re going to be happy for our brave senators and congressmen and women.”
However, in the Panorama Edit, he is shown saying: “We’re going to walk to the Capitol … and I’m going to be with you. And we’re going to fight like hell.”
In total, he used the words “fight” or “struggle” 20 times elsewhere in the address.
The fallout led to the BBC’s director general Tim Davie and Head of News Deborah Turness resigning.
Both outgoing senior leaders have pushed back against critics who say the episode raises more questions about the BBC’s impartiality.
Davie told staff on a call Tuesday:
He said the BBC had gone through “difficult times… but it’s doing really well, and that’s saying more than any newspaper, any weapon”.
In staff who called on Tuesday Davie or the chair of the BBC discussed the legal threat of Trump.
Downing Street said it was a “matter for the BBC”.
“It is clearly not for the government to comment on any ongoing legal matters,” the Prime Minister’s official spokesperson said.