Ofcom fines GB News £100,000 over Rishi Sunak programme

Ofcom Fines GB News £100,000 For Bias

Rishi Sunak participated in the Question and Answer session back in February this year.

Ofcom has imposed a £100,000 penalty on GB News for violating rules on impartiality during a show that included former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.

On February 12, 2024, he made an appearance on a television channel during a special one-hour segment focused on current events, which featured a question and answer session.

The media regulator stated that Mr. Sunak was provided with a platform that was not challenged, allowing him to showcase the policies and achievements of his government ahead of the UK General Election.

However, Angelos Frangopoulos, the CEO of GB News, stated that Ofcom's choice to impose the fine represents "a direct assault on free expression and journalism in the UK."

Ofcom stated that the fine was applied due to the severity and ongoing nature of this violation of its broadcasting regulations.

Ofcom has announced that it has informed GB News that they must air a statement regarding the regulator's conclusions, choosing the timing themselves.

Ofcom highlighted that GB News is currently involved in a legal dispute with them regarding several decisions.

Mr. Frangopoulos referred to the financial penalties as "unneeded, unjust, and illegal."

"The proposal to impose sanctions on GB News contradicts Ofcom's responsibility to uphold fairness, legality, and proportionality in protecting free speech, especially when it comes to political expression and issues that concern the public," he stated.

GB News has unsuccessfully fought a case in the High Court to prevent Ofcom from imposing temporary penalties on the network. Their legal team claimed that such actions would harm its reputation in a way that cannot be undone.

GB News aired a program where the public had the opportunity to ask Rishi Sunak questions in a Q&A format, which resulted in 547 complaints during the broadcast.

In May, Ofcom stated that they had no concerns regarding the show's editorial structure and noted that it did not offer a sufficiently broad spectrum of important perspectives.

At the time, GB News replied by stating that "14 out of the 15 questions posed" were "very critical of the government."

Since its launch in 2021, the broadcasting regulator has determined that GB News has violated its guidelines on 12 occasions.

Currently, there are six ongoing investigations, following the decision to terminate one involving Dan Wootton in July of this year.