Trump drops BBC's commercial arm from Panorama lawsuit, but main case remains

Trump drops BBC's commercial arm from Panorama lawsuit, but main case remainsImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Donald Trump accuses the BBC of "intentionally, maliciously, and deceptively doctoring" his 6 January 2021 speechByIan YoungsCulture reporterPublished1 minute agoDonald Trump has removed the BBC's commercial arm from his defamation lawsuit over a controversial episode of Panorama, but the US president is still pursuing his multi-billion dollar claim against the BBC as a whole.Last December, Trump sued the BBC and subsidiaries BBC Studios Productions and BBC Studios Distribution over a 2024 Panorama episode that edited together different sections of a speech he gave.The BBC argued that the Studios companies had "no role in creating or producing the documentary, and did not broadcast it in the US".A court filing on Thursday confirmed Trump's agreement that the claims against BBC Studios should be dismissed, but added: "President Trump shall continue prosecuting his causes of action against defendant British Broadcasting Corporation."Trump is suing for up to $10bn (£7.4bn) over the way Panorama spliced together a speech he made before the storming of the US Capitol on 6 January 2021.The lawsuit - filed in Florida - accuses the BBC of "intentionally, maliciously, and deceptively doctoring" his speech.The BBC has apologised for an editing error that gave "the mistaken impression that President Trump had made a direct call for violent action".However, the BBC has asked the court to dismiss the lawsuit, arguing that the programme doesn't meet the legal criteria for defamation and wasn't made available on its US platforms.Last month, Trump's lawyers admitted they had no evidence that the documentary was available in the US on the BBC's BritBox subscription service, as they had originally claimed, or on BBC.com, BBC Select or through US broadcasters.Earlier this week, the pre...