GB News

[dosxuk]

Not only that but Discovery is sort of seen as a science based channel (though it's vastly more tabloid than it used to be - in the 1990s it was basically another BBC2 but with only documentaries rather than the cultural stuff), and scientists generally tend a bit left. Not something they're going to want to associate with.

Discovery Inc, former owner of GB News, current owner of Eurosport, Golf TV and part of UKTV do a lot more than broadcast sciencey programmes and documentaries.

 

[brad465]

Apparently both Colin Brazier and Alex Phillips have left.

 

[jon0844]

Darren Grimes rumoured to be going too?

And yet there are some new recruits proudly stating they're starting soon.

 

[sor]

Brazier I can understand, since he is from the world of actual news and might finally have had second thoughts. Grimes's schtick is tailor made for GB News or TalkTV however, so unless Murdoch's come with a better offer...

 

[Mojo]

Apparently both Colin Brazier and Alex Phillips have left.

Yes, there was a new schedule announced on Wednesday for autumn in advance of this though!

Sadly, On The Money, hosted by Liam Halligan, which must have been the best and most insightful financial programme on the television, will no longer be a standalone show but instead will be short segments across the afternoon programming.

Mark Longshurst who has been covering intermittently over the summer holidays, will host a three hour slot with Gloria de Piero, and then Patrick Christys will have another three hour slot up to Dewbs & Co at 6pm. The latter slot on Fridays will be Phillip Davies MP & Esther McVey MP.

Isn’t clear yet what slots the newcomers of Portillo, Pierce and Olivia Utley will take.

Darren Grimes rumoured to be going too?

And yet there are some new recruits proudly stating they're starting soon.

Darren Grimes will not be leaving. Calvin Robinson’s new show (the last major change promised a religious affairs show which failed to materialise) will replace The Discussion on Sunday afternoons.

 

[jon0844]

What about Tom Harwood. If Liz Truss becomes PM, I can see him moving to Downing Street to be her pet.

 

[Scotrail12]

I'm opposed to MPs taking on two shows a week. Found them dull when I watched as well.

Shame for Brazier who is a professional.

Only watch two shows on GB these days - Friday Night Feast with Patrick Christys and Free Speech Nation with Andrew Doyle. Both are entertaining. I did Wootton & Neil Oliver for a while but I just can't really be bothered with the constant culture wars from Wootton or the slightly conspiracy like stuff that we hear from Oliver.

 

[jon0844]

I lost all respect for Colin Brazier when he started to rummage through luggage on a crashed plane (I know he apologised but, come on, what was he thinking?), and he seemed to lurch to the right since - which means all things considered, I won't miss him.

 

[brad465]

Apparently Darren Grimes has left (by firing?) GB News. He also seems to be in a bad way because all his tweets bar a recent "update shortly" tweet have gone, and his profile and banner are just a starry space scene:

https://twitter.com/darrengrimes_

 

[Mojo]

Apparently Darren Grimes has left (by firing?) GB News. He also seems to be in a bad way because all his tweets bar a recent "update shortly" tweet have gone, and his profile and banner are just a starry space scene:

https://twitter.com/darrengrimes_

He can’t have been that well loved to have been given the TV equivalent of the graveyard shift (Saturday & Sunday afternoons). I’ve had a rare weekend at home this week and myself and my partner did question to see Emily Carver, who I didn’t even think was a presenter (just a regular panelist) covering yesterday again, for what seems like the last few months or so, and wondered whether he was actually coming back, as he seemed very sure that he was.

[Father - as he sometimes calls himself] Calvin Robinson did today’s show and even managed a few obscure religious references, including in a story about a Canadian teacher wearing very large fake breasts - a story which an anonymous 4chan poster claims may actually be concocted by a troll. Still no sign of his weekly religious affairs programme which I’m sure was promised at the start of the year!

I’d still love to know who’s paying for it, despite a few more major chains getting ad slots, and despite some not bad viewing figures especially on weeknight evenings, there are still no Ads on their radio station or online streams, and a not insignificant number of the adverts on the TV are from local businesses in South West Wales.

 

[AlterEgo]

GB News is full of cranks, honestly. Calvin Robinson realised the CoE wouldn’t touch him with a barge pole so went and got ordained by some very odd heretical sect instead. The channel houses some of the flotsam and jetsam of the reactionary and tedious right wing and I cannot stand to watch even a minute of it. Go look at their YouTube channel and the comments under each video to see the unpleasant people the channel is really speaking to.

 

[jon0844]

Maybe Darren Grimes fancies his chances in Italy now they've lurched even further to the right? Of course, he can still sit in his mum's basement and broadcast his hate from the UK.

 

[ld0595]

Looks like it was either nothing or something was sorted behind the scenes.

https://twitter.com/darrengrimes_/status/1574455480361127960?t=mqbJNInGHjH5dp32kbcUAg&s=19

Look forward to being back on @GBNEWS on Saturday at 2 PM after my holiday for a brand new episode of Real Britain! You won’t want to miss it.

 

[Cloud Strife]

GB News is full of cranks, honestly. Calvin Robinson realised the CoE wouldn’t touch him with a barge pole so went and got ordained by some very odd heretical sect instead. The channel houses some of the flotsam and jetsam of the reactionary and tedious right wing and I cannot stand to watch even a minute of it. Go look at their YouTube channel and the comments under each video to see the unpleasant people the channel is really speaking to.

It's a very particular business model. What they're trying to do is dominate the online market by having American-style HOT TAKES, and while GB News is awful in most respects, they do a good job with their online presence. They pump out a huge amount of content, although it says a lot that their more serious (and occasionally interesting) content barely attracts any views while anything bad about Harry and Meghan will attract huge numbers.

There is some method to the madness. If they dominate the online media space, then it doesn't really matter if anyone is watching GB News or not. All they need to do is have random clowns rant on about things, then your online team takes the most controversial stuff ("Neil Oliver CRUSHES woke lefty teachers!") and there you go, views.

Ultimately, what's happening here is that very wealthy people are starting to heavily manipulate online spaces. There's nothing comparable to GB News in the UK in terms of just how much content they pump out, and you can already see how people repeat what they've seen on YouTube as gospel.

There's a very revealing interview here: https://www.mediaweek.com.au/future...ruptor-gb-news-says-ceo-angelos-frangopoulos/

“We are also really pleased about our digital growth. Our YouTube site has more subscribers than rivals who have been on the scene for over a decade.

And this is what it's really about: poisoning minds online.

 

[Typhoon]

Question: I've noticed that 'Friday morning with Esther and Philip' is on this Friday at 10am. Is it on at this time every Friday - even when Parliament is sitting (such as last Friday, during the Chancellor's 'Fiscal Event')? Are the Whips OK with this? (Perhaps more importantly, are their constituents OK with this?)

I know Friday isn't a regular business day and there will be MPs away on ministerial or parliamentary business, but this is different. I suppose if they are OK with Cox, they must be, but it seems rather 'unusual' to me. (I won't be tuning in to check on them, I can stand either - and not just because of their opinions.)

 

[Mojo]

Question: I've noticed that 'Friday morning with Esther and Philip' is on this Friday at 10am. Is it on at this time every Friday - even when Parliament is sitting (such as last Friday, during the Chancellor's 'Fiscal Event')? Are the Whips OK with this? (Perhaps more importantly, are their constituents OK with this?)

They announced schedule changes in early Sept which I posted above #395 - it’s a new show as they previously only hosted weekend - but intended to be permanent, or at least as permanent as GBNews’ daytime schedule can be.

 

[Typhoon]

They announced schedule changes in early Sept which I posted above #395 - it’s a new show as they previously only hosted weekend - but intended to be permanent, or at least as permanent as GBNews’ daytime schedule can be.

Sorry I noticed the show but hadn't picked up on the timing. I'm afraid I lost interest in GB News some time ago, although Portillo might be worth listening to. Although I am aware of his politics, at least he offered a mature argument when on Andrew Neil's programme on the BBC.

 

[jon0844]

And this is what it's really about: poisoning minds online.

Yes, it has been said before that certain groups don't need eyeballs (although clearly they hoped to get that too, along with the ability to charge subscriptions for additional content - something that never came to fruition) but just to have a platform to create soundbites and memes etc.

In other words, the stuff that people share on social media without fact checking - and that people can quote and pass on as proof of whatever crackpot conspiracy theory they're promoting this week.

(I see in the USA, Steve Bannon is now going down the human replacement theory rabbit hole as part of Joe Biden's recent announcement about measures to reduce cancer cases. Clearly this is the great reset in action, which will kill off the human race and replace with democrats that want to become immortal. And, no, I'm not even making that up. Think of it is as a continuation of the Covid jab being to a means to control us and turn it up to 11).

 

[Cloud Strife]

In other words, the stuff that people share on social media without fact checking - and that people can quote and pass on as proof of whatever crackpot conspiracy theory they're promoting this week.

Yup, this is exactly what they're going for. There's a significant amount of people who will click on things like "MARK DOLAN SAVAGES MEGHAN", although what he actually says will be whatever agenda the editors want to push on that day.

As much as I think that GB News is utter rubbish, it's very clear that their social media strategy is working and working well. Take this as a prime example:



(picture: screenshot from YouTube, showing a video with Valentine Low about Meghan Markle being narcissistic. It has 147,000 views in 9 hours)

What is interesting is that the culture war stuff does very badly in comparison. There's an example of Mark Dolan ranting about keeping "sex and gender out of the classroom" (ironic, given that he was the host of Balls of Steel, which featured the 'Bunny Boiler'), but in 5 days, it's only had 2700 views. Perhaps this is a sign that the US-style culture wars simply don't work here, despite the best efforts of Johnson and friends.

Even the stuff that is interesting (such as Mark Dolan interviewing Jonathan Aitken, who is now a priest working in prisons) doesn't seem to attract much attention. I actually watched that out of curiosity, and Aitken came across as being genuinely interested in helping prisoners, even down to the point where he joked about how being in Belmarsh gave him credibility. The interview actually made Aitken seem at peace with himself, which was nice to see.

 

[jfollows]

Post #379 above reported that Warner Brothers Discovery was going to sell its stake in GB News, today's Sunday Times reports that it received £8 million for its 25% share, having originally spent £20 million buying it (https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/...-value-as-discovery-sells-off-stake-g0cz8t69d).
An existing investor in GB News bought the shares at their new knock-down price.

GB News sheds half its value as Discovery sells off stake
Jamie Nimmo

Sunday October 02 2022, 12.01am, The Sunday Times

The valuation of GB News has more than halved after Discovery, the American broadcast giant, dumped its stake in the news channel at a hefty discount.

Discovery, which has merged with Warner Bros, offloaded its holding in August for £8 million, having initially bought its 25 per cent stake for £20 million, according to accounts filed at Companies House by Discovery’s British division.

The share sale values the right-of-centre news channel, whose presenters include the former Ukip leader Nigel Farage and former ITV star Eamonn Holmes, at £32 million, compared with £80 million when it launched in June last year.

The Brexiter hedge fund tycoon Sir Paul Marshall and Legatum, the investment company founded by New Zealand billionaire Christopher Chandler, snapped up Discovery’s stake and invested more money into the company. They invested alongside Discovery upon the channel’s launch, which was marred by technical glitches, lighting problems and executive departures. The veteran BBC broadcaster Andrew Neil quit as GB News chairman three months after the launch, claiming it “would have killed me if I’d carried on” as he criticised its approach and shift to the right as it chased more viewers.

GB News said it had “successfully completed a £60 million series B raise. The company is investing heavily in British journalism and is experiencing growth across all its audience platforms.”

Warner Bros Discovery did not comment.

 

[Typhoon]

Post #379 above reported that Warner Brothers Discovery was going to sell its stake in GB News, today's Sunday Times reports that it received £8 million for its 25% share, having originally spent £20 million buying it
An existing investor in GB News bought the shares at their new knock-down price.

It could be that Warner Brothers are cutting their losses, expecting the price to go lower still and the existing investor bought the shares for fear that Warner Brothers would have to dump their shares at an even lower price.

I don't suppose this went down badly in the News Corp boardroom.

 

[Mojo]

Even more schedule changes this week and next (!)

To the Point on Mon - Thu is to be replaced with the popular Bev Turner who finally gets her own show after being a regular stand in across the schedule. Hope they can find something for Mercy Muroki, she is really good, although the show wasn’t as good since Patrick left for his own slot.

Mark Dolan’s show on Saturdays will start one hour earlier, to replace a show that is currently repeats. It will be called “Mark Dolan’s Saturday Night In.”

Finally, Real Britain with Darren Grimes will end by the end of the year. Not sure what will replace it, although 2pm on a Saturday afternoon is hardly a popular slot on any channel, let alone GB News!

 

[Scotrail12]

Even more schedule changes this week and next (!)

To the Point on Mon - Thu is to be replaced with the popular Bev Turner who finally gets her own show after being a regular stand in across the schedule. Hope they can find something for Mercy Muroki, she is really good, although the show wasn’t as good since Patrick left for his own slot.

Mark Dolan’s show on Saturdays will start one hour earlier, to replace a show that is currently repeats. It will be called “Mark Dolan’s Saturday Night In.”

Finally, Real Britain with Darren Grimes will end by the end of the year. Not sure what will replace it, although 2pm on a Saturday afternoon is hardly a popular slot on any channel, let alone GB News!

Mercy is no longer on the channel.

 

[Mojo]

Mercy is no longer on the channel.

Just discovered that elsewhere. A real shame they are losing such good people. I quite liked it when Bev & Mercy hosted To The Point together, they provided quite good balance to each other.

 

[birchesgreen]

Mercy is no longer on the channel.

You are so right.

Oh, you are talking about a person?

 

[Sunil_P]

Mark Dolan’s show on Saturdays will start one hour earlier, to replace a show that is currently repeats. It will be called “Mark Dolan’s Saturday Night In.”

Speaking of Mark Dolan, I loved "Balls of Steel"!

 

[brad465]

Finally, Real Britain with Darren Grimes will end by the end of the year. Not sure what will replace it, although 2pm on a Saturday afternoon is hardly a popular slot on any channel, let alone GB News!

Sounds like he'll have more time on Saturdays for crafty antics.

 

[Cloud Strife]

Speaking of Mark Dolan, I loved "Balls of Steel"!

Likewise. Unfortunately, what he's doing now is incredibly contrived. It's quite sad to watch, because he's obviously gone down the loony right route to maintain something resembling a career.

I'm not sure why he didn't have more of a career after Balls of Steel, especially because he was fantastic at playing the straight host with ridiculous characters. Now he's literally just pushing the same words as the US Republicans, but adjusted to British conditions.

Finally, Real Britain with Darren Grimes will end by the end of the year. Not sure what will replace it, although 2pm on a Saturday afternoon is hardly a popular slot on any channel, let alone GB News!

I'd argue that viewers aren't really important with hosts like him, because his ability to produce content which can be quickly posted online is much more important. So, you can shove him on at 4am on a Tuesday morning, because it doesn't really matter very much.

 

[Mojo]

Glad to see The Political Correction back on this morning. Not sure what happened to Portillo and as much as I like him the show wasn’t particularly interesting and was more of a general interest rather than political show as you’d expect for a Sunday morning.

Likewise. Unfortunately, what he's doing now is incredibly contrived. It's quite sad to watch, because he's obviously gone down the loony right route to maintain something resembling a career.

I'm not sure why he didn't have more of a career after Balls of Steel, especially because he was fantastic at playing the straight host with ridiculous characters. Now he's literally just pushing the same words as the US Republicans, but adjusted to British conditions.

Do you actually watch his programmes? Because it’s nothing like what would be suited to US Republicans or loony right!

 

[365 Networker]

Finally, Real Britain with Darren Grimes will end by the end of the year. Not sure what will replace it, although 2pm on a Saturday afternoon is hardly a popular slot on any channel, let alone GB News!

Perhaps Nigel Farage - he used to do a special 2 hour show every Sunday when he was on LBC. It could also be Portillo - that might be why the Political Correction is back. There is also John Cleese who will be presenting a show at some point.