Communications regulator Ofcom has ordered GB News to attend a meeting to discuss its compliance.
It follows an investigation that found an edition of the Mark Steyn programme, first aired on GB News on 4 October 2022, to be in breach of UK broadcasting rules.
The programme included an interview with the feminist author, journalist and conspiracy theorist Naomi Wolf. During the interview, Dr Wolf made serious claims about the Covid-19 vaccine, including that its rollout amounted to a pre-meditated crime – “mass murder” – and was comparable to the actions of “doctors in pre-Nazi Germany”.
Ofcom received 422 complaints about the interview with correspondents alleging the comments were “dangerous” and included “misinformation” that went “unopposed”.
The regulator’s investigation concluded that GB News fell short of this requirement by allowing Dr Wolf to promote a serious conspiracy theory without challenge or context – for example through other contributions in the programme or by the presenter, who appeared to support many of her comments.
In a statement Ofcom said broadcasters are free to transmit programmes that include controversial and challenging views, including about Covid-19 vaccines or conspiracy theories. However, alongside this editorial freedom, the Broadcasting Code imposes “a clear requirement that if such content has the potential to be harmful, the broadcaster must ensure that its audience is adequately protected”.
Complaints received about GB News to date total 4,560, representing 1.6% of all broadcast complaints made to Ofcom during this period. Of these 1,714 related to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Most complaints made against GB News have not been pursued.
To date four investigations into the channel have been launched and the Dr Wolf interview represents the second breach of broadcasting rules recorded against GB News since it launched in June 2021.
Earlier this year Ofcom found another Mark Steyn programme, broadcast on April 21, 2022, to be in breach of the Broadcast Code after it incorrectly claimed that official UKHSA data provided definitive evidence of a causal link between receiving a third Covid-19 vaccine and higher infection, hospitalisation and death rates.
Previously, Ofcom concluded an edition of Talking Pints with Nigel Farage (23 August 2021) – relating to offensive language –was not in breach of the Code. It is currently investigating whether Saturday Morning with Esther and Philip broadcast on 11 March 2023 broke rules requiring news and current affairs to be presented with due impartiality.
