‘Free of the shackles’: Michael Grade’s GB News defence raises concerns over relaxing of Ofcom rules | Ofcom

Regulators are not generally known for sparking controversy. When day-to-day business requires making sensitive, legally fraught decisions, they’re often a cautious bunch.

However, since stepping down as chairman of Ofcom, one of Britain’s most scrutinized watchdogs, his Conservative colleague Michael Grade has been doing his best to shatter that stereotype. “I am free from the shackles,” he said recently.

Despite the discomfort felt by many broadcasters over Ofcom’s alleged failure to challenge GB News, the right-wing network that has brought a partisan brand of broadcasting to the UK, Lord Grade has provocatively backed down and opted to give a series of interviews.

He said BBC Radio 4’s Today program could “absolutely” be hosted by a politician. “From where?” He then went further. He said critics of GB News were “embarrassed” because the channel was “speaking to the agenda of the majority” and cited Brexit and immigration.

“They actually got better and better [in meeting broadcasting rules]“It’s not hard to adapt; sometimes it’s just one sentence in a script.”

It was a very harsh departure. But there is a problem. Those involved in drafting the impartiality rules that apply to Britain’s broadcasters believe Grade misunderstood the rules his regulator is charged with enforcing.

Others think his approach is a more deliberate move to roll back broadcast neutrality rules, facilitating GB News’ approach in the process.

“This debate has been going on in certain parts of the broadcast media for nearly three years,” said Stewart Purvis, former chief executive of ITN and former content and standards partner at Ofcom.

“Now the retired chairman of Ofcom is confirming some of the things we’ve been complaining about, and he’s doing it in a very colorful way. It’s actually quite shocking… It’s classic, mouth-watering stuff.”

Ofcom’s other legacy figures are equally problematic.

“I thought this reflected a complete misunderstanding of how impartiality legislation is set out in the Communications Act, how it is set out in the broadcasting rules and how it should be applied,” said Chris Banatvala, founding director of standards at Ofcom, which drafted the law and investigation procedures.

“If Ofcom takes the approach that a single line or a few lines in a long program is sufficient and that ensures impartiality, I think we may finally have gotten to the bottom of why GB News and other broadcasters are allowed to do what they do now,” he said.

In fact, Banatvala said broadcasters dealing with controversial topics should give “due weight” to other views. How and when to do this depended on the program, but one sentence would often not be enough, he said.

“Sometimes on GB News or other channels, you have one presenter and three guests all agree and one person disagrees,” he said. “The idea that sometimes just one sentence can provide the necessary objectivity is absurd.”

Grade has repeatedly denied allegations that GB News was treated differently. “They have to follow the same rules as the BBC, the same rules as ITN and the same rules as Sky,” he told the BBC. “If they have a different news agenda than the BBC, that doesn’t make it wrong. It’s a good thing for freedom of expression.”

Ofcom has since distanced itself from Grade’s post-departure comments but stood by its approach to GB News.

A spokesman said: “We apply our rules fairly and equally to all publishers, taking action when they fall short, just like we did at GB News.” he said. “The role of Ofcom’s chairman does not involve enforcing broadcasting rules or decision-making for individual cases. Any personal views expressed by the former chairman do not represent Ofcom policy.”

GB News said it had always complied with Ofcom’s broadcast rules and now consistently outperforms the BBC News channel and Sky News.

“GB News is the UK’s number one news channel,” the statement said. “We have achieved this by serving the people of the United Kingdom with bold and fearless journalism. We are regulated by Ofcom’s broadcasting rules, not members of the media elite.”

The note leads to strong opinions. Many describe him as friendly and charming, and a true master at curating the types of programming staples family viewing in the pre-internet age.

Others believe his approach stems from a career struggling with overzealous regulation.

“I’ve known this man for at least 30 years,” Purvis said. “We both come from a time when the regulator was definitely the bad guy. There were pre-broadcast checks and sometimes bans on programmes. So we grew up thinking that editing was censorship. That all changed around 2003, but Michael was still fighting yesterday’s war against the regulators.”

“His approach has created a culture where, in my view, Ofcom is not intrusive enough.”

Peer was set up by Boris Johnson’s government in 2022 following a failed attempt to hand the job to former Daily Mail editor Paul Dacre. Some concerns were expressed about Grade at the time; some of his past political statements, including his lack of expertise in dealing with harm specifically online, as well as his dislike of the “woke brigade.”

However, amid fallout from attempts to appoint Dacre, Grade was confirmed to be in the role due to his broadcasting experience. The 83-year-old has held senior roles at the BBC, ITV and Channel 4. Many people welcomed his arrival.

“His grades are very impressive and he is very friendly,” said Roger Mosey, former head of BBC TV News. “It was a lovely moment when he got to Ofcom. He’s an old-school, big analogue channel ‘Saturday night entertainment show’ kind of guy.”

“Grade’s regulation period was not the best part of his publishing life.”

There are many who share Grade’s push for freedom of expression, but concerns remain that Ofcom’s approach effectively weakens broadcasting rules.

Mosey said: “In the merging world of broadcasting, I have no inherent problem with the existence of a channel. [GB News] There is a different set of attitudes in it. What Ofcom effectively did, Grade said, was to bend over backwards a bit to make this possible, because they thought it was the politically correct thing to do.

“I can understand why they did this. The problem is that the regulator has started to distort itself in its decisions.”