Ofcom says it won't shut down GB News, is unsure if Farage counts as a politician: https://inews.co.uk/news/ofcom-says-it- ... an-3021317Today programme presenter Nick Robinson asked Ofcom on X, formerly Twitter: "The leader of the Reform party Richard Tice & its only MP Lee Anderson can present programmes in the run up to the (general election) campaign alongside Jacob Rees-Mogg. Is that your idea of impartiality?" Robinson also questioned how Reform founder Mr Farage could present an "impartial" programme during the campaign.
Cristina Nicolotti Squires, the Ofcom executive responsible for broadcast regulation, told i: "There are some people who won't be happy unless we shut GB News down tomorrow and that's not the kind of country we live in. We're not censors." She added: "Nick [Robinson] would be the first one to be cross if Ofcom told him how Today ought to be. We live in a country with editorial freedom and the right for broadcasters to decide how they make programmes. It's up to them to make them impartial."
Ofcom has said candidates at the upcoming general election are not allowed to host any programmes during the campaign.
The regulator will rule on whether Mr Farage is defined as a "politician" when it publishes the outcome of an impartiality complaint over his show. The Reform figurehead has yet to confirm if he will stand for parliament at the next election.
If Mr Farage was a Reform spokesman but didn't stand, Ofcom's rules suggest he would still be able to present "non-news current affairs programmes" until polling day.
She also rejected criticism from Andrew Neil, GB News's short-lived frontline presenter, who told a parliamentary select committee this week that Ofcom should show some "backbone" and take action against the channel.
"We've given GB News eleven breaches so far," Ms Squires said. "We've put them on notice that further breaches of the code will be taken incredibly seriously and possibly lead to sanctions."
Ofcom was not "scared" to fine GB News, if it is found guilty of repeated breaches, she said.
