The GB News Johnson coup ensures the station's future - but there may be mayhem ahead
The Drum’s founder, Gordon Young, looks at GB News’ securing of former PM Boris Johnson. It'll ensure audience and attention, but what about advertisers?
On any level, GB News hiring Boris Johnston is a coup - except one - it is easy to predict production mayhem. The station’s studios are highly automated and depend on a presenter’s ability to hit the right button at the right time, which is not in the famously chaotic politician’s forte.
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But if assuming he is kept away from the master switch that takes the whole station off the air, his appearances - due to start in January - will turbocharge ratings.
Even his most ardent critics will find him hard not to watch. One senses that GB News is at a crossroads. Its ratings are performing well across all platforms - for example, GB News Radio, a simulcast of the TV channel, is now the UK’s largest drivetime commercial news station.
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Overall, the radio station’s ratings are up 25% to almost 400,000 listeners a week. At the same time, the audience of Nigel Farage, one of its most controversial hosts, matches the average audience of all its rivals combined.
No doubt Johnston will be more of a blockbuster, but he will also probably command a blockbusting fee. But while the channel invests in its on-screen talent, the advertising community it depends on to fund all this remains nervous.
The station has had numerous run-ins with Ofcom, the media regulator, where it has been accused of breaching rules around impartiality. In some instances, it has been cleared; in others, it has simply received a rap over the knuckles.
But there are a host of other outstanding complaints, many around the use of sitting politicians, such as the Conservative Jacob Rees Mogg, as presenters.
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And, of course, there was the recent debacle where presenter Laurence Fox made misogynistic comments on a show hosted by Dan Wooten,
However, decisive action by the station, which saw the presenters being suspended and unequivocal statements that such behavior was unacceptable, underlined the station is taking its regulatory responsibilities seriously.
It is also considering moving some of its more high-risk presenters to streaming, where Ofcom regulation is not as stringent, to consolidate this trend.
That, together with growing audiences, seems to finally convince advertisers to defy an unofficial boycott of the station. For example, The Telegraph newspapers report that relationships with the likes of Havas are improved.
The signs are that GB News is becoming an established part of the UK landscape. The Johnston deal will ensure that for any brand that can put concerns aside, it is a channel that cannot be ignored.
We’re delighted to announce some very exciting news…https://t.co/BRg8ZgTy1X pic.twitter.com/FD0wz0Urkt
— GB News (@GBNEWS) October 27, 2023