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The BBC Chair, Samir Shah, reached out to the White House with a personal apology concerning the edited version of President Trump’s speech broadcasted by the network. This speech was delivered prior to the Capitol riot by some of his followers.
The broadcaster clarified that there are no intentions to air the documentary again, which had combined segments of Trump’s address that were originally separated by nearly an hour.
In a statement, the BBC acknowledged that their editing inadvertently suggested a seamless sequence rather than distinct excerpts, leading to a false impression that Trump had directly incited violence.
Following the broadcast, Trump’s attorney issued a demand for an apology and warned of a potential lawsuit seeking US$1 billion (approximately $1.53 billion).
This controversy arose from an episode of the acclaimed BBC current affairs program Panorama, titled “Trump: A Second Chance?” which aired shortly before the 2024 U.S. presidential election.
The third-party production company that made the film spliced together three quotes from two sections of the 2021 speech, delivered almost an hour apart, into what appeared to be one quote in which Trump urged supporters to march with him and “fight like hell.”
Among the parts cut out was a section where Trump said he wanted supporters to demonstrate peacefully.
Director-general Tim Davie, along with news chief Deborah Turness, quit Sunday, saying the scandal was damaging the BBC and “as the CEO of BBC News and Current Affairs, the buck stops with me.”