Inside the year-long BBC saga that led to Trump’s $1bn lawsuit threat

US President Donald Trump has threatened the BBC with a $1bn suit implicit the editing of a 2021 code helium gave soon earlier protesters attacked the US Capitol connected January 6, 2021.

Trump’s threat connected Monday evening is the latest crook successful a saga which has embroiled the corp for the past week, pursuing the leak of a memo which criticised the BBC’s impartiality successful a fig of areas of its coverage.

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In particular, the memo, which was written by a erstwhile BBC writer and autarkic advisor to the BBC’s Editorial Guidelines and Standards Board, Michal Prescott, singled retired the misleading editing of Trump’s speech, which was featured successful a Panorama documentary aired soon earlier the US predetermination past year.

The leaked memo has prompted outrage, mostly from right-wing media organisations and politicians, and prompted the resignations of Director-General Tim Davie and quality CEO Deborah Turness connected Sunday.

As a nationalist broadcaster that is funded by a mandatory licence interest for each households successful possession of a television, the BBC faces aggravated scrutiny from each sides of the governmental divide, with immoderate claiming it is excessively blimpish successful its coverage, and others saying it is excessively left-leaning.

The organisation has besides weathered respective scandals successful caller years implicit the behaviour of immoderate of its presenters, arsenic good arsenic complaints from its journalists implicit its sum of Israel’s warfare connected Gaza.

This year, it was forced to driblet erstwhile nonrecreational footballer and sports commentator Gary Lineker implicit a pro-Palestine Instagram station that was wide seen arsenic anti-Semitic.

Some media insiders accidental this is each portion of a propulsion by right-wing figures successful the BBC to reassert power implicit the BBC’s editorial content. Speaking to Radio 4’s flagship Today quality programme connected Monday, David Yelland, erstwhile exertion of the Sun newspaper, said Davie and Turness were the victims of a “coup”.

The Guardian paper cited a “BBC insider” who said that committee subordinate Robbie Gibb, who is simply a idiosyncratic person of Prescott, had “led the charge”.

Gibb besides served arsenic manager of communications for Conservative Prime Minister Theresa May and was an editorial advisor astatine the right-leaning GB News, earlier being appointed by erstwhile Prime Minister Boris Johnson to the BBC committee successful 2021. Gibb besides sits connected the Editorial Guidelines and Standards Committee (EGSC) on with BBC seat and committee caput Samir Shah, Tim Davie and autarkic manager Caroline Thomson.

The BBC, responding to queries from the Guardian, said Gibb was lone 1 of the 4 committee members who approved Prescott arsenic a advisor to EGSC. Prescott, successful his memo, said helium had nary governmental affiliations.

Outgoing Director General of the BBC Tim Davie walks extracurricular BBC Broadcasting House aft helium and Chief Executive of BBC News Deborah Turness resigned pursuing accusations of bias astatine the British broadcaster, including successful the mode it edited a code by US President Donald Trump, successful London, UK, November 11, 2025 [Hannah McKay/Reuters]

This is simply a timeline of events starring up to the Trump Panorama documentary ungraded this week.

Some of the dates highlighted present are taken from a missive sent by seat Samir Shah to parliament connected Monday, and from the memo sent by Michael Prescott to BBC committee members.

October 28, 2024: BBC Panorama programme airs

An hour-long BBC Panorama documentary titled, Trump: A Second Chance? was broadcast 1 week earlier the US statesmanlike elections.

In it, 2 abstracted parts of a code made by Trump earlier the Capitol Hill riots successful Washington, DC, connected January 6, 2021, were spliced unneurotic by editors.

This editing gave the content that Trump had actively encouraged the riots, which turned violent. The edited clip showed Trump saying, “We’re going to locomotion down to the Capitol and I’ll beryllium determination with you. And we fight. We combat similar hell.”

However, transcripts from Trump’s code amusement that helium archetypal said, “We’re going to locomotion down to the Capitol, and we’re going to cheer connected our brave senators and congressmen and women, and we’re astir apt not going to beryllium cheering truthful overmuch for immoderate of them.”

Then, astir an full hr later, helium said, “We combat similar hell. And if you don’t combat similar hell, you’re not going to person a state anymore.” He was not straight referencing the march connected the Capitol successful the 2nd part, and the Panorama documentary did not see a portion wherever Trump said helium wanted supporters to “peacefully” marque their voices heard.

January 16, 2025: Panorama documentary discussed by EGSC

Concerns astir the editing of the Trump code were raised astatine a gathering of the BBC’s Editorial Guidelines and Standards Board (EGSB). However, this was raised arsenic portion of wide reflections connected sum of the elections, according to Samir Shah.

Prescott raised concerns, Shah said, but the committee besides heard from the quality department, which said it was edited to “better convey the connection of the speech”. Feedback was sent to the Panorama team, but nary ceremonial enactment was taken, Shah said.

Prescott aboriginal wrote successful his memo that EGSC advisor David Grossman besides delivered a study during the gathering showing the BBC had been biased successful its sum of Trump, and appeared to favour Democratic Party campaigner Kamala Harris.

February 2025: BBC forced to region Gaza documentary

In February, the UK’s media regulator, Ofcom, said a BBC documentary astir Palestinian children surviving done Israel’s warfare connected Gaza had breached rules connected impartiality arsenic it was narrated by the 13-year-old lad of a lawman agriculture curate successful the Hamas-run government.

Five days aft it was broadcast, the BBC removed the documentary, Gaza: How To Survive A War Zone, from its online streaming platform.

May 12, 2025: Panorama documentary discussed again by EGSC

According to Prescott’s memo, a elder subordinate of the quality squad again defended the Panorama editing, saying, “There was nary effort to mislead the assemblage astir the contented oregon quality of Mr Trump’s code earlier the riot astatine the Capitol. It’s mean signifier to edit speeches into abbreviated signifier clips.”

Prescott added that Turness besides justified the editing astatine this meeting.

May 13, 2025: Prescott emails concerns to BBC seat Samir Shah

In his memo, Prescott said helium emailed Samir Shah the pursuing time to explicate his concerns, saying, “This is simply a very, precise unsafe precedent. I anticipation you hold and instrumentality immoderate signifier of enactment to guarantee this perchance immense occupation is nipped successful the bud.”

Prescott said helium received nary reply.

June 2025: Review of the EGSC’s processes begins

This was undertaken by Chris Saul, a ineligible advisor who has been tasked with erstwhile reviews of the transparency of BBC processes since 2019. The circumstantial issues helium was asked to study connected for this review, and the outcomes, are unclear. 

June 2025: Prescott leaves the BBC

At immoderate constituent aft this, Prescott sent his elaborate memo to each committee members on with a screen missive stating his “despair” astatine being ignored by elder quality leaders.

The memo accused the BBC of “misleading” edits, and claimed the BBC Arabic work had shown anti-Israel bias by over-emphasising stories captious of Israel. Prescott’s memo said BBC sum was “misrepresenting” the fig of women and children killed successful Gaza, and besides wrongly presented sum connected starvation successful the besieged enclave.

At 1 point, Prescott appeared to instrumentality a swipe astatine Al Jazeera: When a elder quality subordinate defended BBC Arabic successful meetings, saying it was astir arsenic trusted arsenic Al Jazeera, Prescott questioned if Al Jazeera “is the golden standard” the BBC should aspire to.

The memo further criticised what helium called the BBC’s “one-sided” trans rights coverage, claiming stories highlighting women’s rights organisations and others who were captious of the trans rights question had been suppressed.

July 2025: BBC journalists kick astir Gaza coverage

In July, an interior BBC probe recovered that the documentary, Gaza: How To Survive A War Zone, which was removed from its website successful February, had breached its editorial guidelines connected accuracy.

More than 100 journalists moving for the BBC wrote a missive protesting this and claimed they were being forced to “do Israel’s PR”.

“We judge the refusal to broadcast the documentary ‘Gaza: Medics Under Fire’ is conscionable 1 successful a agelong enactment of docket driven decisions,” the journalists wrote. “It demonstrates, erstwhile again, that the BBC is not reporting ‘without fearfulness oregon favour’ erstwhile it comes to Israel.”

October 17, 2025: Prescott’s memo is reviewed astatine a afloat committee meeting

Shah said helium met Prescott afterwards to sermon “next steps”.

November 3, 2025: Prescott’s memo is leaked to the Daily Telegraph

This was the archetypal clip the contents of the memo entered the nationalist domain. The right-wing broadsheet paper accused the BBC of doctoring the Trump code and reported that Prescott had revealed “systemic problems” which BBC absorption had failed to address.

November 4, 2025: Parliamentary committee writes to BBC chair

Parliament’s Culture, Media and Sport Committee, led by Conservative seat Caroline Dinenage, wrote to Samir Shah requesting entree to Prescott’s afloat report, and demanding to cognize what actions had been taken by the BBC successful effect to the memo erstwhile it was archetypal sent.

Dinenage besides requested an update astir the EGSC review, which began successful June. “The BBC intelligibly has superior questions to reply regarding some its editorial standards and the mode successful which concerns are handled by elder management,” Dinenage wrote in the letter.

She added that members of parliament “need to beryllium reassured that those astatine the precise apical of the BBC are treating these issues with the seriousness they deserve”.

November 4, 2025: BBC pushes back

In a statement, a BBC spokesperson said, “While we don’t remark connected leaked documents, erstwhile the BBC receives feedback, it takes it earnestly and considers it carefully.”

November 4, 2025: Memo discussed astatine heated BBC committee meeting

According to reporting by the Guardian newspaper, Gibb was contiguous astatine this gathering and was 1 of the committee members who pressed CEO Turness implicit Prescott’s claims. Gibb had besides pressed Turness connected the memo successful an earlier committee meeting, The Guardian reported.

November 5, 2025: Prescott to springiness grounds to Parliament

The parliamentary website announced that Michael Prescott would springiness grounds to the Culture, Media and Sport Committee connected Wednesday, November 12 astatine 10am, arsenic the UK authorities prepared to motorboat a reappraisal of the BBC mostly successful beforehand renewal of its Royal Charter, which sets the presumption for its operations, and which is owed successful 2027. In a aboriginal update, the league was postponed to an as-yet-undisclosed date.

November 7, 2025: The White House comments

White House property caput Karoline Leavitt criticised the BBC successful an interrogation with The Daily Telegraph pursuing the leak. Leavitt said watching the BBC connected her trips to the UK “ruins” her time and that the BBC is “100 percent fake news” and a “propaganda machine”.

November 7, 2025: Former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson steps in

In a file successful the right-wing Daily Mail newspaper, Johnson accused Director-General Tim Davie of failing to supply immoderate explanations astir the contented of impartiality astatine the BBC pursuing the leak.

“No 1 has adjacent travel adjacent to resigning,” helium wrote.

Johnson accused the BBC of being a “sort of mouthpiece for Hamas”, and added that until Davie responded to the memo, “I americium simply going to halt paying my licence interest and suggest you bash the same.”

November 9, 2025: Davie and Turness resign

Director-General Tim Davie said “ultimate responsibility” laic with him, and that helium had decided to resign aft “reflecting connected the precise aggravated idiosyncratic and nonrecreational demands of managing this relation implicit galore years successful these febrile times”.

Chief enforcement of BBC News, Deborah Turness said the “buck stops with me”. She added that “while mistakes person been made, I privation to beryllium perfectly wide caller allegations that BBC News is institutionally biased are wrong”.

Chief Executive of BBC News Deborah Turness speaks to the media extracurricular BBC Broadcasting House successful London, UK, connected November 10, 2025 [Jack Taylor/Reuters]

November 9, 2025: US President Donald Trump weighs in

Trump reacted triumphantly to the quality of the resignations connected his Truth Social network.

He wrote: “The TOP radical successful the BBC, including TIM DAVIE, the BOSS, are each quitting/FIRED, due to the fact that they were caught ‘doctoring’ my precise bully (PERFECT!) code of January 6th. Thank you to The Telegraph for exposing these Corrupt “Journalists.” These are precise dishonest radical who tried to measurement connected the scales of a Presidential Election. On apical of everything else, they are from a Foreign Country, 1 that galore see our Number One Ally. What a unspeakable happening for Democracy!”

November 10, 2025: Samir Shah denies organization bias

The BBC seat and caput of the EGSC, Shah responded to Parliament’s missive of November 4.

Shah said galore of the issues Prescott raised were already nether review.

He pushed backmost against claims by Prescott that absorption had not acted connected the points raised regarding the Trump documentary.

Shah wrote, “There was interest expressed by members of the Committee arsenic good arsenic Mr Prescott of the mode programme was edited. However, the EGSC besides heard from BBC News that the intent of editing the clip was to convey the connection of the code made by President Trump truthful that Panorama’s assemblage could amended recognize however it had been received by President Trump’s supporters and what was happening connected the crushed astatine that time.”

He said helium met with Prescott aft an October 17 committee gathering to sermon the issues and adjacent steps.

Shah apologised for the BBC’s “error of judgement” implicit the editing of Trump’s speech, but said determination was nary organization bias astatine the BBC.

He besides laid retired steps being taken to reappraisal the issues Prescott had raised and to overhaul the EGSC much generally.

BBC seat Samir Shah arrives astatine the Houses of Parliament successful London, UK, connected December 13, 2023 [File: Toby Melville/Reuters]

November 10, 2025: Trump threatens $1bn instrumentality suit

US President Donald Trump threatened a $1bn suit via a missive to the BBC from his counsel, Alejandro Brito, alleging “malicious, disparaging” edits.

The missive demanded a retraction of the documentary, an apology, and payments to “appropriately compensate President Trump for the harm caused”.

The broadcaster has been fixed until Friday 22:00 GMT to respond or, Trump’s lawyer said, helium volition be: “left with nary alternate but to enforce his ineligible and equitable rights, each of which are expressly reserved and are not waived, including by filing ineligible enactment for nary little than $1,000,000,000 successful damages. The BBC is connected notice. PLEASE GOVERN YOURSELF ACCORDINGLY”.

November 11, 2025: BBC bosses code staff

Outgoing Director-General Davie and BBC seat Samir Shah spoke to unit for 40 minutes. Davie admitted a “mistake” successful the Panorama documentary and said that unit pursuing disapproval of the movie had contributed to his determination to resign. However, helium besides sounded a defiant note, and told staff, “I deliberation we’ve got to combat for our journalism.”