Trump sues BBC for defamation over Panorama speech edit

World news December 16, 2025

US President Donald Trump has filed a $5bn (£3.7bn) lawsuit against the BBC over an edit of his 6 January 2021 speech in a Panorama documentary.

Trump accused the broadcaster of defamation and of violating a trade practices law, according to court documents filed in Florida.

The BBC apologised to Trump last month, but rejected his demands for compensation and disagreed there was any “basis for a defamation claim”.

Trump’s legal team accused the BBC of defaming him by “intentionally, maliciously, and deceptively doctoring his speech”. The BBC has not yet responded to the lawsuit.

Trump said last month that he planned to sue the BBC for the documentary, which aired in the UK ahead of the 2024 US election.

“I think I have to do it,” Trump told reporters of his plans. “They cheated. They changed the words coming out of my mouth.”

In his speech on 6 January 2021, before a riot at the US Capitol, Trump told a crowd: “We’re going to walk down to the Capitol, and we’re going to cheer on our brave senators and congressmen and women.”

More than 50 minutes later in the speech, he said: “And we fight. We fight like hell.”

In the Panorama programme, a clip showed him as saying: “We’re going to walk down to the Capitol… and I’ll be there with you. And we fight. We fight like hell.”

The BBC acknowledged that the edit had given “the mistaken impression” he had “made a direct call for violent action”, but disagreed that there was basis for a defamation claim.

In November, a leaked internal BBC memo criticised how the speech was edited, and led to the resignations of the BBC’s director general, Tim Davie, and its head of news, Deborah Turness.

Before Trump filed the lawsuit, lawyers for the BBC had given a lengthy response to the president’s claims.

They said there was no malice in the edit and that Trump was not harmed by the programme, as he was re-elected shortly after it aired.

They also said the BBC did not have the rights to, and did not, distribute the Panorama programme on its US channels. While the documentary was available on BBC iPlayer, it was restricted to viewers in the UK.

In his lawsuit, Trump cites agreements the BBC had with other distributors to show content, specifically one with a third-party media corporation that allegedly had licensing rights to the documentary outside the UK. The BBC has not yet responded to these claims, nor has the corporation with the alleged distribution agreement.

The suit also claims that people in Florida may have accessed the programme using a VPN or by using streaming service BritBox.

“The Panorama Documentary’s publicity, coupled with significant increases in VPN usage in Florida since its debut, establishes the immense likelihood that citizens of Florida accessed the Documentary before the BBC had it removed,” the lawsuit said.

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Wordle today: The answer and hints for December 16, 2025

Jack Black reacts to Elle Fanning calling him “the hottest man I’ve ever seen in my life”

Students at an Oklahoma high school crowned their principal prom king after he charged, disarmed and was shot by an armed intruder at their campus.

Kirk Moore, the Pauls Valley high school principal, received the honor on Friday night after his students voted to honor him for having defended them.

“Ladies and gentlemen, our king,” an announcer declared at the Pauls Valley high school prom.

Video of the scene showed students cheering and celebrating as Moore received the honor, with a couple high-fiving him in congratulations. One clip showed him walking in to sound of the Nickelback song Hero, the hit theme of the 2002 film Spider-Man.

Right after someone put a crown on Moore’s head, part of the song’s chorus blared on the video: “And they say that a hero can save us / I’m not going to stand here and wait.”

The jubilant moment punctuated a sequence of events that began with the attack in which Moore intervened at about 2.30pm on 7 April at Moore’s school about 60 miles (96.6km) south of Oklahoma City, a sworn police document states.

According to investigators, the alleged attacker, Victor Lee Hawkins, had two semi-automatic handguns and fired several shots before he was disarmed by Moore and another school staff member who arrived to help. School surveillance video captured the intrusion.

Hawkins “entered the school, pointed his pistol, and yelled for everyone to get on the ground”, special agent Meric Mussett of the Oklahoma state bureau of investigation wrote in the sworn police statement.

The statement added that the alleged shooter pointed the gun at a female student in the lobby and pulled the trigger, but the weapon malfunctioned.

“Hawkins then stepped out from behind the vending machine and pointed his gun at a male student in the foyer,” Mussett’s statement said. “Principal Moore then came out of his office and charged at Hawkins.”

Moore was shot in the leg as he wrestled the attacker, a 20-year-old described in court documents as being obsessed with the 1999 shooting at Colorado’s Columbine high school in which 12 students and one teacher were killed.

Authorities praised Moore’s actions, saying he prevented a tragedy and possible mass shooting at his school.

“It doesn’t surprise me the actions that he took, but it is amazing, the actions that he took,” Don May, Pauls Valley’s police department chief, told NBC News. “There’s not a doubt in my mind that he saved kids’ lives.”

Investigators said the alleged attacker was a former Pauls Valley high school student.

Moore said in a statement reported by NBC that he was grateful for “an outpouring of love and support” after the attack that he thwarted.

“Like so many educators around the country, we prepare for these events through training and careful assessment of the threats,” Moore said. “I am grateful that my instincts and training, as well as God’s hand, were available to me.”

#Oklahoma #principal #disarmed #gunwielding #intruder #crowned #prom #king">

Oklahoma principal who disarmed gun-wielding intruder crowned prom kingStudents at an Oklahoma high school crowned their principal prom king after he charged, disarmed and was shot by an armed intruder at their campus.Kirk Moore, the Pauls Valley high school principal, received the honor on Friday night after his students voted to honor him for having defended them.“Ladies and gentlemen, our king,” an announcer declared at the Pauls Valley high school prom.Video of the scene showed students cheering and celebrating as Moore received the honor, with a couple high-fiving him in congratulations. One clip showed him walking in to sound of the Nickelback song Hero, the hit theme of the 2002 film Spider-Man.Right after someone put a crown on Moore’s head, part of the song’s chorus blared on the video: “And they say that a hero can save us / I’m not going to stand here and wait.”The jubilant moment punctuated a sequence of events that began with the attack in which Moore intervened at about 2.30pm on 7 April at Moore’s school about 60 miles (96.6km) south of Oklahoma City, a sworn police document states.According to investigators, the alleged attacker, Victor Lee Hawkins, had two semi-automatic handguns and fired several shots before he was disarmed by Moore and another school staff member who arrived to help. School surveillance video captured the intrusion.Hawkins “entered the school, pointed his pistol, and yelled for everyone to get on the ground”, special agent Meric Mussett of the Oklahoma state bureau of investigation wrote in the sworn police statement.The statement added that the alleged shooter pointed the gun at a female student in the lobby and pulled the trigger, but the weapon malfunctioned.“Hawkins then stepped out from behind the vending machine and pointed his gun at a male student in the foyer,” Mussett’s statement said. “Principal Moore then came out of his office and charged at Hawkins.”Moore was shot in the leg as he wrestled the attacker, a 20-year-old described in court documents as being obsessed with the 1999 shooting at Colorado’s Columbine high school in which 12 students and one teacher were killed.Authorities praised Moore’s actions, saying he prevented a tragedy and possible mass shooting at his school.“It doesn’t surprise me the actions that he took, but it is amazing, the actions that he took,” Don May, Pauls Valley’s police department chief, told NBC News. “There’s not a doubt in my mind that he saved kids’ lives.”Investigators said the alleged attacker was a former Pauls Valley high school student.Moore said in a statement reported by NBC that he was grateful for “an outpouring of love and support” after the attack that he thwarted.“Like so many educators around the country, we prepare for these events through training and careful assessment of the threats,” Moore said. “I am grateful that my instincts and training, as well as God’s hand, were available to me.”#Oklahoma #principal #disarmed #gunwielding #intruder #crowned #prom #king

mwasimuddin125 0

Students at an Oklahoma high school crowned their principal prom king after he charged, disarmed and was shot by an armed intruder at their campus.
Kirk Moore, the Pauls Valley high school principal, received the honor on Friday night after his students voted to honor him for having defended them.
“Ladies and gentlemen, our king,” an announcer declared at the Pauls Valley high school prom.
Video of the scene showed students cheering and celebrating as Moore received the honor, with a couple high-fiving him in congratulations. One clip showed him walking in to sound of the Nickelback song Hero, the hit theme of the 2002 film Spider-Man.
Right after someone put a crown on Moore’s head, part of the song’s chorus blared on the video: “And they say that a hero can save us / I’m not going to stand here and wait.”
The jubilant moment punctuated a sequence of events that began with the attack in which Moore intervened at about 2.30pm on 7 April at Moore’s school about 60 miles (96.6km) south of Oklahoma City, a sworn police document states.
According to investigators, the alleged attacker, Victor Lee Hawkins, had two semi-automatic handguns and fired several shots before he was disarmed by Moore and another school staff member who arrived to help. School surveillance video captured the intrusion.
Hawkins “entered the school, pointed his pistol, and yelled for everyone to get on the ground”, special agent Meric Mussett of the Oklahoma state bureau of investigation wrote in the sworn police statement.
The statement added that the alleged shooter pointed the gun at a female student in the lobby and pulled the trigger, but the weapon malfunctioned.
“Hawkins then stepped out from behind the vending machine and pointed his gun at a male student in the foyer,” Mussett’s statement said. “Principal Moore then came out of his office and charged at Hawkins.”
Moore was shot in the leg as he wrestled the attacker, a 20-year-old described in court documents as being obsessed with the 1999 shooting at Colorado’s Columbine high school in which 12 students and one teacher were killed.
Authorities praised Moore’s actions, saying he prevented a tragedy and possible mass shooting at his school.
“It doesn’t surprise me the actions that he took, but it is amazing, the actions that he took,” Don May, Pauls Valley’s police department chief, told NBC News. “There’s not a doubt in my mind that he saved kids’ lives.”
Investigators said the alleged attacker was a former Pauls Valley high school student.
Moore said in a statement reported by NBC that he was grateful for “an outpouring of love and support” after the attack that he thwarted.
“Like so many educators around the country, we prepare for these events through training and careful assessment of the threats,” Moore said. “I am grateful that my instincts and training, as well as God’s hand, were available to me.”

#Oklahoma #principal #disarmed #gunwielding #intruder #crowned #prom #king">Oklahoma principal who disarmed gun-wielding intruder crowned prom king

Students at an Oklahoma high school crowned their principal prom king after he charged, disarmed and was shot by an armed intruder at their campus.

Kirk Moore, the Pauls Valley high school principal, received the honor on Friday night after his students voted to honor him for having defended them.

“Ladies and gentlemen, our king,” an announcer declared at the Pauls Valley high school prom.

Right after someone put a crown on Moore’s head, part of the song’s chorus blared on the video: “And they say that a hero can save us / I’m not going to stand here and wait.”

The statement added that the alleged shooter pointed the gun at a female student in the lobby and pulled the trigger, but the weapon malfunctioned.

Authorities praised Moore’s actions, saying he prevented a tragedy and possible mass shooting at his school.

Investigators said the alleged attacker was a former Pauls Valley high school student.

Moore said in a statement reported by NBC that he was grateful for “an outpouring of love and support” after the attack that he thwarted.

#Oklahoma #principal #disarmed #gunwielding #intruder #crowned #prom #king

Defence deal is latest example of deepening ties between Canberra and Tokyo amid shared concerns over China’s rise.

Published On 19 Apr 2026

Australia and Japan have signed contracts for the first three of 11 warships set to be delivered to the Australian navy under a landmark $7bn defence deal, as the two close US allies in the Asia Pacific region deepen defence cooperation.

Australia’s Defence Minister Richard Marles and Japanese Defence Minister Koizumi Shinjiro made the announcement in Melbourne on Saturday at the signing ceremony for the Mogami-class warships.