1 00:00:01,520 --> 00:00:03,880 Speaker 1: So Donald Trump is threatening to sue the BBC for 2 00:00:03,920 --> 00:00:06,600 Speaker 1: a billion US dollars for twisting his words. His lawyer 3 00:00:06,640 --> 00:00:09,160 Speaker 1: has written a letter accusing the corporation of damaging and 4 00:00:09,200 --> 00:00:12,880 Speaker 1: defamatory statements. Jonathan Kurzley is our US correspondent with US. 5 00:00:12,920 --> 00:00:15,880 Speaker 2: Hey, Jonathan, Heather, are always good to stalk you in 6 00:00:15,880 --> 00:00:16,880 Speaker 2: a listeners. 7 00:00:16,480 --> 00:00:18,680 Speaker 1: What does Donald Trump want from them? Does he want 8 00:00:18,720 --> 00:00:21,840 Speaker 1: an apology? Does he want to withdrawal of the Panorama program? 9 00:00:21,960 --> 00:00:26,320 Speaker 2: Or both? Like all of his legal threats and lawsuit 10 00:00:26,360 --> 00:00:30,280 Speaker 2: actions against news organizations, he wants money and he wants victory. 11 00:00:30,760 --> 00:00:32,840 Speaker 2: What he has done here is put forward the same 12 00:00:32,880 --> 00:00:35,080 Speaker 2: sort of figure that he's put forward in other legal 13 00:00:35,120 --> 00:00:38,240 Speaker 2: threats against other media organizations here in the United States, 14 00:00:38,280 --> 00:00:42,360 Speaker 2: by demanding one billion dollars for what he is calling 15 00:00:42,440 --> 00:00:45,600 Speaker 2: or what his lawyers are calling, malicious and disparaging edits 16 00:00:45,640 --> 00:00:48,239 Speaker 2: over the speech he delivered on the day of the 17 00:00:48,240 --> 00:00:51,320 Speaker 2: insurrection at the Capitol. It was featured in a Panorama documentary. 18 00:00:51,880 --> 00:00:55,800 Speaker 2: The words were spliced from different sections of the program 19 00:00:55,920 --> 00:00:58,360 Speaker 2: to make it look like he had said something slightly 20 00:00:58,360 --> 00:01:00,960 Speaker 2: different to what he had actually said. We've obviously seen 21 00:01:01,000 --> 00:01:03,880 Speaker 2: the resignations of the director General of the BBC and 22 00:01:03,960 --> 00:01:05,720 Speaker 2: of the see of the News Division. But that's not 23 00:01:05,880 --> 00:01:08,240 Speaker 2: enough for the American President, who, as I said, is 24 00:01:08,280 --> 00:01:10,240 Speaker 2: now taking the action that he's taken against other news 25 00:01:10,319 --> 00:01:13,160 Speaker 2: organizations when he's not happy with what they publish or 26 00:01:13,200 --> 00:01:16,559 Speaker 2: broadcast about him, demanding that a billion dollars be paid 27 00:01:16,720 --> 00:01:19,920 Speaker 2: to him. Whether he takes this legal action and exactly 28 00:01:19,920 --> 00:01:22,560 Speaker 2: where he takes this legal action though, that remains to 29 00:01:22,600 --> 00:01:25,480 Speaker 2: be seen, because if he does it in the United Kingdom, well, 30 00:01:25,840 --> 00:01:28,479 Speaker 2: they've got different defamation laws to what they do here 31 00:01:28,760 --> 00:01:32,000 Speaker 2: in the United States. In the United States, he would 32 00:01:32,000 --> 00:01:34,680 Speaker 2: have to go to a specific state. He would also 33 00:01:34,880 --> 00:01:38,920 Speaker 2: have to prove that that program Panorama had been viewed 34 00:01:39,160 --> 00:01:42,800 Speaker 2: in that specific state. So he clearly has some options 35 00:01:42,800 --> 00:01:45,000 Speaker 2: that he needs to work through. But the option he 36 00:01:45,040 --> 00:01:48,080 Speaker 2: has put down is as he has done before. It 37 00:01:48,200 --> 00:01:51,800 Speaker 2: is apologized, retract and pay up now? 38 00:01:51,840 --> 00:01:54,360 Speaker 1: Am I right in thinking that in most of these 39 00:01:54,400 --> 00:01:57,040 Speaker 1: cases this is settled outside of court before it even 40 00:01:57,040 --> 00:01:59,120 Speaker 1: reaches court, in which case this is probably going to 41 00:01:59,160 --> 00:01:59,840 Speaker 1: end the same way. 42 00:02:00,960 --> 00:02:04,520 Speaker 2: Well, when it comes to the media claims and the 43 00:02:04,560 --> 00:02:08,480 Speaker 2: media litigation he's made, not many of them have actually progressed. 44 00:02:08,480 --> 00:02:10,320 Speaker 2: I mean, the one that is moving forward at the 45 00:02:10,320 --> 00:02:12,520 Speaker 2: moment is one against the Wall Street Journal over some 46 00:02:12,600 --> 00:02:15,840 Speaker 2: material that was published in relation to the Epstein files 47 00:02:15,840 --> 00:02:19,360 Speaker 2: and Donald Trump's links to those and apparent birthday card 48 00:02:19,360 --> 00:02:24,080 Speaker 2: that was sent by President Trump to Jeffrey Epstein that 49 00:02:24,160 --> 00:02:27,639 Speaker 2: Donald Trump denies. He ever wrote in other civil matters 50 00:02:27,680 --> 00:02:31,280 Speaker 2: where he has taken action against media companies here I'm 51 00:02:31,320 --> 00:02:34,720 Speaker 2: thinking of CBS in sixty minutes in particular, and paramount 52 00:02:35,200 --> 00:02:37,959 Speaker 2: it has been settled outside court. He has also taken 53 00:02:38,000 --> 00:02:42,280 Speaker 2: action against ABS America and received some fifteen million US 54 00:02:42,320 --> 00:02:46,920 Speaker 2: dollars towards his Presidential Library fund. If you like, so, 55 00:02:47,720 --> 00:02:50,400 Speaker 2: this is exactly what it is. It is a threat. 56 00:02:50,480 --> 00:02:53,080 Speaker 2: It is not a design to get a billion dollars, 57 00:02:53,160 --> 00:02:55,960 Speaker 2: but this is the figure he has put down before. 58 00:02:56,080 --> 00:02:59,400 Speaker 2: It is an intimidation tactic to say, if you want 59 00:02:59,440 --> 00:03:01,320 Speaker 2: to take this all the way, then this is what 60 00:03:01,360 --> 00:03:04,160 Speaker 2: it's going to cost you. Otherwise, talk to me outside, 61 00:03:04,200 --> 00:03:06,320 Speaker 2: talk to my lawyers outside, and let's find the middle 62 00:03:06,320 --> 00:03:09,680 Speaker 2: ground that everybody's happy with now. Employers of other media 63 00:03:09,760 --> 00:03:11,920 Speaker 2: organizations haven't been happy with the playoffs that have been 64 00:03:11,919 --> 00:03:16,160 Speaker 2: given because it admits guilt in a sort of way. 65 00:03:16,280 --> 00:03:19,600 Speaker 2: So what happens now with the BBC in turmoil over 66 00:03:19,639 --> 00:03:21,800 Speaker 2: the loss of its significant leadership and now facing a 67 00:03:21,800 --> 00:03:25,760 Speaker 2: billion dollars threat from the American President is how much 68 00:03:26,000 --> 00:03:29,080 Speaker 2: now do they cow tower to America's commander in chief. 69 00:03:29,440 --> 00:03:30,959 Speaker 1: Jonathan's always good to talk to you, mate, Thank you 70 00:03:31,040 --> 00:03:34,239 Speaker 1: very much. Jonathan Kursley are US correspondent. For more from 71 00:03:34,320 --> 00:03:37,600 Speaker 1: Hither Duplessy, Allen Drive, listen live to news talks it'd 72 00:03:37,600 --> 00:03:41,680 Speaker 1: be from four pm weekdays, or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio.