GB News fined £100,000 by Ofcom after Rishi Sunak interview
Ofcom has imposed a £100,000 fine on GB News for “breaking due impartiality rules” following an interview with the former prime minister Rishi Sunak earlier this year.
The media watchdog began an investigation into GB News three days after the airing of a programme on February 12 titled People’s Forum: The Prime Minister, which saw Mr Sunak answer questions from a studio audience and a presenter.
GB News chief executive Angelos Frangopoulos says that the channel is challenging the Ofcom ruling in the courts, which they say is “unnecessary, unfair and unlawful”.
Uncontested platform
In a statement, Ofcom said: “We concluded that the then prime minister, Rishi Sunak, had a mostly uncontested platform to promote the policies and performance of his Government in a period preceding a UK general election, in breach of Rules 5.11 and 5.12 of the Broadcasting Code.
“Given the seriousness and repeated nature of this breach, Ofcom has imposed a financial penalty of £100,000 on GB News Limited. We have also directed GB News to broadcast a statement of our findings against it, on a date and in a form determined by us.
“GB News is challenging our original breach decision in this case by judicial review, which we are defending. Ofcom will not enforce this sanction decision until those proceedings are concluded.”
High court challenge
The channel previously lost a High Court challenge to temporarily block Ofcom from sanctioning it, with GB News’ lawyers arguing that it would cause “irreparable damage” to its reputation.
In a statement, Mr Frangopoulos called Ofcom’s decision “a direct attack on free speech and journalism in the United Kingdom”.
He said: “We believe these sanctions are unnecessary, unfair and unlawful.
“The High Court has already granted GB News permission to bring a judicial review to challenge Ofcom’s decision that the programme was in breach of due impartiality requirements.
“The sanction proposed by Ofcom is therefore still subject to that legal challenge.
“The plan to sanction GB News flies in the face of Ofcom’s duty to act fairly, lawfully and proportionately to safeguard free speech, particularly political speech and on matters of public interest.”
The statement continued: “We have believed from the very start the People’s Forum was an important piece of public interest programming, and that appropriate steps were taken to ensure due impartiality and compliance with the Broadcasting Code.
“It was designed to allow members of the public to put their own questions directly to leading politicians.”
He added that the channel decided to be “regulated and we understand our obligations under” the Broadcasting Code, and believes that Ofcom is “obliged by law to uphold freedom of expression and apply its rules fairly and lawfully”.
Mr Frangopoulos said: “We will continue to fearlessly champion freedom; for our viewers, for our listeners, and for everyone in the United Kingdom. As we have all seen, this is needed more than ever.”
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At last, some Ofcom teeth albeit just nibbling. GBeebies spouts on about ‘free speech’ which is not truly afforded to their left leaning contributors as they are always interrupted, talked over and patronised unlike the free rein given to their right wing propagandists. Don’t get me going on 30p Lees’ insulting, clearly biased and sneering left back in the corner feature.
If squealing GBeebies are so determined to keep on breaking Ofcom rules, they should follow Talk s**t TV to the online world. The time to revoke their broadcast licence has long passed. They can have all the ‘free speech’ they want in their sordid little echo chamber.
Even Murdoch saw thw direction of travel with the costs and pulled it from aerial feeds. Reportedly 60+ million in losses now for gbeebies. Yet they pay massive salaries to “talent” that don’t have talent, 30p, Mogg, farage etc. And a capable editorial team would have spotted the problem. So, did they flag it up to be overruled?
Looks like ofcom have had a lot of rulings against them to date.
Ex presenter lost his case against ofcom a few days ago and on the hook for 50k costs. Quality program makers.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/oct/29/former-gb-news-presenter-ordered-to-pay-50000-in-legal-costs
Thanks for the link. GBeebies talk about safeguarding free speech but some get removed for being too free with their speech and others are literally shown the door in a hurry because their free speech is at odds with stations’ editorial guidelines. They just can’t get this free speech thing right.
GB News is trash TV. The worse of the worse. Whose bigoted Anglocentric presenters spout anti-Muslim tropes. Dehumanise asylum seekers. Attack devolution and target the most vulnerable in society. Who give extremists and the Conservative far-right a platform to spew their dystopian lies and BritNat bile. It’s an open sewer full of Tory turds and its putrid “patriot” B***s*** obtuse and an abuse of free speech & democracy.
ARTD’s go to conspiracy channel? Shocked I tell you, shocked……
snigger
A pile of steaming old cack, so they say.
Its funny Al Jazeera which is also a news channel seems to be ignored by Ofcom, they refer to Hamas and Hezbollah as ‘freedom fighters’, but the UK Government has them down as terrorists organisations!
And RT (Russia Today)
Ofcom wouldn’t act until the EU and the UK government enacted sanctions against them.
GB news does serve a purpose though, where else would the failures of politics, journalism and life in general go out to pasture if they weren’t there.