Donald Trump has accused the BBC of harassment after the broadcaster sought court orders to subpoena three of his family members. The request for testimony and documents from Donald Trump Jr., Ivanka Trump, and Jared Kushner is part of a legal defense against a $10 billion defamation lawsuit filed by the president.
The lawsuit centers on an episode of the BBC program Panorama that edited portions of a speech Trump delivered prior to the January 6, 2021, Capitol riots. While the BBC has apologized for an "error of judgment" that it admitted created a "mistaken impression" of a call for violence, the broadcaster is now seeking evidence from family members who were reportedly in the Oval Office during the speech's preparation.
A spokesperson for the president’s legal team characterized the subpoenas as an attempt to "harass him, his family and supporters by abusing the deposition process." The BBC maintains that the trio are material witnesses whose testimony is necessary to determine if the program's edits meaningfully altered the intended message of the speech. The broadcaster stated it moved to seek a court order after attempts to serve the subpoenas were unsuccessful due to the family's protection by the U.S. Secret Service.
For the individuals involved, a court order would result in a concrete change to their legal obligations, requiring them to undergo depositions—sworn out-of-court oral testimony—and produce personal or professional documents. They would notice this through increased legal fees and the time required for preparation and testimony. The BBC has requested these orders be served via email and certified mail to bypass physical security barriers provided by the Secret Service, which currently protects them as immediate family of a sitting president.
The case could set a precedent for how news organizations defend themselves against defamation claims involving edited video content and the extent to which a president's family can be treated as material witnesses for official speeches. The next step in the proceedings is a Friday deadline for the president's legal team to respond to the subpoena request. A trial is currently scheduled to begin in Miami in February.