Trump vs the BBC…what happens next?

10 snips

Nov 12, 2025

Elie Honig, a Senior Legal Analyst at CNN with deep insights into high-profile cases, joins to dissect Donald Trump's threats to sue the BBC over edited footage of his January 6 speech. Elie explores the legal hurdles Trump may face in proving defamation under US law. He also sheds light on damages assessment, including reputational impacts and financial implications. Additionally, the discussion delves into new emails connecting Trump to Epstein’s victim, raising questions about political fallout and public perception.

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INSIGHT

Threat Over Edited January 6 Clip

Donald Trump threatened to sue the BBC over an edited January 6 clip that he says misrepresents his speech.
CNN analyst Elie Honig frames the claim as potentially raising US defamation law issues like "actual malice."

INSIGHT

Deadline And Political Messaging

Trump's letter demanded apology, retraction and compensation by Friday as a deadline before suing.
He has used previous settlements as political vindication even when legal merit was debated.

INSIGHT

High US Bar For Defamation

US defamation law requires proving falsity plus "actual malice" for public figures per New York Times v. Sullivan.
That higher US bar makes a Trump suit harder in the United States than in the UK.

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In a Fox News interview released on Tuesday, Donald Trump says he has an ‘obligation’ to sue the BBC for the way it edited a section of a speech he made on January 6th 2021 - the day of the US Capitol riots - as part of a Panorama documentary. The Chair of the BBC, Samir Shah said “the BBC would like to apologise for that error of judgement”.

The BBC has been given a Friday deadline by Trump to respond or face possible legal action, with the US president threatening to sue the corporation for a billion dollars.

Anthony and Marianna speak to Elie Honig, CNN’s Senior Legal Analyst who assesses the likelihood of the case ending up in court, and how any damages could be calculated. We also look at whether any of Trump’s previous legal actions against other media outlets can predict how this dispute may play out.

Plus, newly released emails between Ghislaine Maxwell and Jeffrey Epstein from 2011 allege that Donald Trump 'spent hours' with one of Epstein’s victims. The documents have been published by House Democrats and refer to the president as the "dog that hasn't barked.” Donald Trump has consistently denied any wrongdoing and has accused Democrats of “trying to bring up the Jeffrey Epstein Hoax again because they’ll do anything at all to deflect on how badly they’ve done on the Shutdown, and so many other subjects.”

Anthony and Marianna unpack what this means for the administration and whether it could affect the president’s approval ratings.

HOSTS: * Marianna Spring, Social Media Investigations correspondent * Anthony Zurcher, North America correspondent

GUEST: * Elie Honig, Senior Legal Analyst at CNN

GET IN TOUCH: * Join our online community: https://discord.gg/qSrxqNcmRB * Send us a message or voice note via WhatsApp to +44 330 123 9480 * Email Americast@bbc.co.uk * Or use #Americast

This episode was made by George Dabby and Grace Reeve. The technical producer was Ben Andrews. The series producer is Purvee Pattni. The senior news editor is Sam Bonham.

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