Ofcom to investigate GB News show featuring Rishi Sunak
BBC NewsFEB 25 2024
UK: GB News Threatened With Sanctions Over Impartiality Breach
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The Facts
UK media regulator Ofcom announced on Monday that GB News could face statutory sanctions, after a monthslong investigation into a People's Forum episode featuring Prime Minister Rishi Sunak found that impartiality rules were violated.
Ofcom added that a decision will be made within 60 working days, with potential punishments including a fine, forcing the channel to broadcast a correction, or even suspending or revoking its license.
The hour-long Q&A session aired on Feb. 12, and reportedly triggered 547 complaints over concerns that GB News failed to present an appropriate weight to viewpoints other than Conservative ahead of the general election.
The Spin
Pro-establishment narrative
GB News has a long record of infringing on rules of due impartiality, despite Ofcom adopting a flexible approach to interpret them, so now the time has come for sanctions to be imposed on the channel. As the American experience teaches, undermining broadcast impartiality can only increase divisive influence on the political and media environment.
Establishment-critical narrative
These findings from the media regulator against GB News are completely unreasonable, as the People's Forum allowed undecided voters to challenge Sunak and keep him under constant pressure with robust questions about a wide range of issues. Sanctioning GB News only reveals that Ofcom's true goal is to silence the population.
Metaculus Prediction
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