IKEA shouldn’t listen to Welsh indy supporters on GB News boycott, says Telegraph editor
IKEA shouldn’t listen to Welsh independence supporters in deciding whether to boycott the new GB News TV channel, according to the editor of the Sunday Telegraph.
Allistair Heath penned an article in the newspaper to complain about IKEA’s decision not to advertise GB News, the new right-wing ‘anti-woke’ news network.
“The person whose complaint triggered Ikea’s tweet was a socialist and supporter of Welsh independence,” he wrote.
“Can’t these big companies see that, by politicising every act of consumer choice, they will kill capitalism?”
He seemed to be referring to a tweet by independence supporter Vivianne Jenkins in which she tagged IKEA and said: “I’m one of your customers, but won’t be for much longer if you continue to advertise on GB News.
“I’m with you because of your commitment to sustainability which is hardly their priority I have a choice. So do you. Stop procrastinating. We are watching.”
IKEA responded to say that they had “not knowingly advertised on GB News. We have safeguards in place to prevent our advertising from appearing on platforms that are not in line with our humanistic values and vision to side with the many people.
“We are in the process of investigating how this may have occurred to ensure it won’t happen again in future, and have suspended paid display advertising in the meantime.”
In reality however, IKEA responded to a number of Twitter accounts with a similar tweet, rather than only socialists or Welsh independence supporters.
Allistair Heath however remained adamant that the boycott of GB News was “a turning point for business”.
“They must choose: are they for-profit ventures selling to customer-kings, or weapons of the Left, political organisations masquerading as commercial outfits, militating against freedom? If it’s the latter, the backlash, when it comes, will be ferocious.”
Support our Nation today
For the price of a cup of coffee a month you can help us create an independent, not-for-profit, national news service for the people of Wales, by the people of Wales.
Ironic, because the so-called “woke” are generally not sympathetic to Welsh or Scottish independence, or else see it merely as a means of promoting a woke agenda. But of course, neither are GB News likely to be sympathetic to the independence campaigns either.
Conducted a survey, have you?
Der mlaen nawr, Dafydd, sai’n credu odd ein ffrind o Wrecsam yn siarad yn lythrennol! Ma’ ‘na ddigon o bobl o bob fath o safbwyntiau’n cefnogi a gwrthwynebu annibyniaeth, ond mae’n rhaid cyfaddef fod yna lawer o wrthwynebiaeth yn dod or Guardianophiles ar groes y clawdd! Yng Nghymru, mae’r gwrthwyneb yn wir, wrth gwrs – mae’r asgell chwith yn fwy gefnogol or achos (ond nid yn hollol – wi ‘di sylwi fod yr eidioleg fel arfer yn dod yn gynta, indy yn ail ac o ganlyniad). Dylid syniadaeth annibyniaeth fod yn erbyn egwyddorion y ‘woke’. Diolch i’r drefn fod hynny… Read more »
A somewhat bizarre stance for a free market capitalist, that a company should not have the right to choose how it advertises it’s products. Freedom of choice is surely the defining characteristic of a capitalist market.
Alistair Heath in his criticism of IKEA is himself adopting a Woke stance.
Prize B.S there Michael. The initial interference came from a person who is supposedly a left leaning nationalist. There was nothing about choices other than seeking to inhibit choice.
Attempting to squeeze or even shut down GB News by harassing advertisers is yet another of these hollow gestures that “activists” are good at trotting out. Put a real issue in front of them like inaction over flooding in the South Wales Valleys and how that links to badly thought out wind farm developments and their silence is deafening.
So according to your logic companies should be forced to advertise with the likes of GB News Right-Wing Rants whether they want to or not. Odd how you regard that as ‘freedom’. But then right-wing nut-jobs always oppose any kind of boycott be it of South Africa during the Apartheid era, segregated buses in Alabama or politically biased news channels. I won’t be watching GB News and that is my choice, if enough people choose not to GB News won’t make money from advertising and will close. According to your logic I’m suppressing free speech when in fact I’m exercising… Read more »
I won’t be watching GB News, but hold no opinion as to whether it should close or not – your hope that it does is quite telling. Nobody is advocating for forced viewing of stuff they don’t like. Nobody should be pressuring Scandinavian furniture makers to commit to a political stance. 100%agree that more impartial news reportage is needed. 100% appalled that you have equated a heterodox, centre right news channel with both apartheid and Jim Crow. You probably aren’t as unreasonable as your commentary suggests – please realise how far off the deep end some of these takes seem.
Firstly, I think centre-right is being a bit generous to GB News. Secondly, I’m not advocating that they should be closed down by government but by consumer power. I don’t think it unreasonable for consumers to use their power to try and get businesses to change their business practices if we find these unreasonable (in this case the political bias of GB News). It would be better if consumer power could force GB News to adopt a politically impartial stance (god knows we need more of that out of our news media) but I can’t see that happening. Lastly, given… Read more »
There flies another brick through the Overton Window. We can agree to differ on how far to the right is too far and whether or not GBs team fit into that category, but I do worry that you may not be able to identify an actual fascist should they amble along, given that you’ve characterised this bunch as such. On that, given that you’ve caricatured wokeness so bizarrely, you my want to read the works of DiAngelo, Ibram Kendi and many of the other high priests of this burgeoning cult – all seems a bit fashy to me! They call… Read more »
I think you miss my point which is that we should be allowed to use our consumer power to influence and, if necessary, bankrupt corporations whose activities we strongly disagree with. Ignoring whether or not GB News is centre-right or right-wing, if they were (for example) outright climate change deniers (and I honestly don’t know if they are, although Nigel Farage is) I think we should have every right to try to influence their advertisers to, if necessary, withdraw their advertising. I sincerely believe that boycott is a perfectly valid political strategy and certainly far more preferable to violence. It… Read more »
Right, good, we’re getting to bedrock here. We’ll agree to disagree on the use of boycotting as valid when it comes to effecting change in the corporate sphere – against a repressive regime, sure. Against a company you don’t like? Seems to curtail discourse and any hope of a rational middle ground emerging. Maybe just don’t watch the channel? ‘Marxist’ and ‘Woke: I agree entirely that the terms can be misappropriated, but these things go both ways. I’ve seen and heard just as much denialism in the face of truly abhorrent, regressive propositions that, on being correctly identified as ‘woke’… Read more »
You are right about wind farm concrete bases on upland marsh.
As much as I respect the original complainants stance in not wanting to patronize a company whose values do not comport with her own, she didn’t announce that she would no longer be shopping there – she provided an ultimatum. This sort of pressure tactic clearly serves only to stifle and punish those who do not align with a preferred worldview. Do I think GB News is a fair, impartial news outfit? Clearly not. Will they be in favour of Welsh Independence, or actively stand against it like the rest of the mainstream UK media? Probably the latter. Do they… Read more »
And quite clearly NO-ONE should listen to the Telegraph editor – on this, or probably anything else.
Lot of free publicity for GB News. Caused by an Indy supporter. A little more focus on our own matters maybe?
Excellent point,CJPh, I didn’t even know it was a tv channel until I just googled it! Then I find a shadow Labour Minister For Women and Equalities, who served under Miliband and Corbyn, is one of the presenters. I’m confused. Just how right wing is this channel said to be? I’m probably going to end up watching it just to find out what it’s about, given I know some of the rubbish on other ‘news’ channels. GBNews must feel really grateful for Vivianne Jenkins and Allistair Heath!
The “ferocious” backlash? Do gammons shop at Scandi-chic stores?
Very much so – light pink and the yellow of a pinapple go very well with the muted pastel tones POANG chair cover…
But I have to call you out on your clearly biased, probably alt-right comment Mr. Humphys! IKEA is “chic”????? I get the “Scandi” but this is clearly fake news.
Ha! I have heard it described as such, lol. Well, I am very biased against IKEA,
for reasons one may find on Wicki. Other than that, as you clearly indicate, it’s not authentic Swedish, Danish or Finnish design. Other readers, who may not have your awareness are recommended to google FinnishDesignShop for the real thing. Vitra is also a really good design store.
Deary me. Just give me a good ole’ coffor bach, a couple of lovespoons and a dresser to hang them on and I’ll be happy. Remember the vikings, mun? never again
To whomever decided to downvote my previous comment, I actually like scandi design trends. IKEA is just for jam-covered meatballs.