“When the Documentary aired, Plaintiff had already been charged by a grand jury on four counts stemming from his alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 election,” BBC lawyer Charles Tobin wrote. “Given the many allegations prior to the Documentary’s release regarding
Plaintiff’s January 6 speech — and that shortly after its release, the President won reelection and carried Florida by a wide margin — Plaintiff cannot plausibly claim that the Documentary harmed his reputation.”
The BBC’s legal pleading acknowledges, but largely downplays, the network’s public apology to Trump last year as he threatened legal action over the program. The BBC conceded that the documentary “unintentionally created the impression that we were showing a single continuous section of the speech, rather than excerpts from different points in the speech, and that this gave the mistaken impression that President Trump had made a direct call for violent action.”
Nevertheless, the storied British TV and radio outlet has insisted that the editing of the speech doesn’t translate into a viable lawsuit.
“We have said throughout we will robustly defend the case against us. Put simply — the documentary was never aired in Florida — or the U.S. It wasn’t available to watch in the U.S. on iPlayer, online or any other streaming platforms including BritBox and BBC Select,” a network spokesperson said Monday. “We have therefore challenged jurisdiction of the Florida court and filed a motion to dismiss the president’s claim.”
A spokesperson for Trump’s legal team waved off the broadcaster’s submission to Altman.
“The BBC is liable to President Trump for intentionally and maliciously defaming him by distorting and manipulating his speech. No amount of attempted legal maneuvers can change that fact,” the spokesperson said. “President Trump will continue to hold accountable the BBC and all those who traffic in fake news.”