Ofcom survey ranks GB News top for viewpoints and viewer trust
An Ofcom annual survey ranked GB News top among British broadcasters for range of viewpoints, and its viewers also rated it highest for trust, according to the channel.
How it was covered
- GB News was the only channel found covering it.
- Channel 5, BBC News, BBC One, BBC Two, Channel 4, ITV and Sky News: not found in tracked broadcasts.
The Full Story
A plain summary built from the channels that reported this story. Facts only one channel reported are attributed to it.
An annual Ofcom survey has seen viewers rank GB News above all other British broadcasters for the range of viewpoints on offer, according to figures discussed in a broadcast segment. The same survey found that viewers rated GB News more highly for trustworthiness than viewers rated the BBC, Sky News, ITV and Channel 4.
The trustworthiness finding, the segment said, was not included in Ofcom's initial release. It emerged the following day after the regulator was chased, the programme claimed. The broadcast presented this as even more important than the viewpoints ranking.
The segment framed the results as a significant milestone for GB News. It described the channel as five years old and as the number one news channel in the country. The presenter said the survey showed it was the most trusted channel among its viewers.
The programme linked the rankings to its format. It said guests from across the political spectrum are allowed to put their case without being interrupted throughout and to take part in extended debate. The presenter contrasted that with other broadcasters, where he said contributors often get only a short soundbite.
The broadcast also discussed the wider decline in trust in the BBC. The presenter cited the Iraq war and a BBC report that he said wrongly claimed ministers had been briefed that the war was launched on a lie. He argued that trust in the BBC had fractured over a long period. He added that programmes such as Panorama and Newsnight once hosted genuine debate, and said GB News was bringing that style back.
Key Claims
Claims reported during this story's coverage, grouped by how many channels reported each one. Select a dot to see the source excerpt.
| Claim |  |
|---|---|
| Only on one channel | |
| GB News viewers gave the channel a higher trustworthiness score than viewers of BBC, Sky News, ITV and Channel 4 gave their respective channels. | |
| The trustworthiness finding was initially omitted by Ofcom and released the next day after follow-up, according to the segment. | |
| Viewers rated GB News highest among British broadcasters for the range of viewpoints offered. | |
Channel Perspectives
What each channel focused on, with key quotes.
GB News treated the Ofcom survey as clear vindication. It led on the range of viewpoints ranking, then stressed a trustworthiness finding it said the regulator omitted until the next day, and tied the result to the channel's debate format and a claimed decline in BBC trust.
- “GB News ranked by its viewers above all other British broadcasters for the range of viewpoints on offer.”
- “We are the most trusted channel and five years on or in the number one news channel in the country.”
- “But what they omitted Ofcom to tell us with the survey until the next day when they were chased, and this is even more important, is that GB News viewers score the channel more highly for trustworthiness than viewers of the BBC Sky News, ITV and Channel 4.”
Broadcast Timeline
News broadcasts tracked for this story, in time order.