Since March 2020, Ofcom has received over 26,000 complaints about TV and radio coverage relating to the Covid-19 pandemic. Covid, compliance and freedom of expression Taking this into account, we will not be pursuing these complaints further. Her comments were put into context by other views expressed during the programme, and a banner broadcast throughout the segment informed viewers that Naomi Wolf had “ faced widespread criticism for Covid research”. Naomi Wolf also appeared on the Mark Steyn programme the following day, and made further claims about Covid-19 vaccines. You can read our decision in full (PDF, 409.1 KB). In light of this, we are requesting that GB News attends a meeting with Ofcom to discuss its approach to compliance. This is the second significant breach of the Code recorded against GB News . Given that GB News did not take adequate steps to protect viewers from this potentially harmful content, we have found the channel in breach of Rule 2.1 of the Broadcasting Code. We found that the comments made by Naomi Wolf had the potential to impact viewers’ decisions about their health and were therefore potentially harmful. Of particular concern was her significant and alarming claim that “ mass murder” was taking place through the rollout of the Covid-19 vaccinations, which she repeated three times. We consider this would have lent credibility to her unchallenged claims. We also took into account that the programme presented Naomi Wolf as a figure of authority, with particular knowledge and expertise in the safety of the Covid-19 vaccines. There was also no scrutiny of the evidence she claimed to hold to support her claims. Our investigation concluded that GB News fell short of this requirement by allowing Naomi Wolf to promote a serious conspiracy theory without challenge or context - for example through other contributions in the programme or by the presenter, who appeared to support many of her comments. However, alongside this editorial freedom, the Broadcasting Code imposes a clear requirement that if such content has the potential to be harmful, the broadcaster must ensure that its audience is adequately protected. It is important to stress that in line with the right to freedom of expression - broadcasters are free to transmit programmes that include controversial and challenging views, including about Covid-19 vaccines or conspiracy theories. Ofcom received 422 complaints that alleged these comments were “dangerous” and included “misinformation” that went “unopposed”. ![]() During the interview, Naomi Wolf made serious claims about the Covid-19 vaccine, including that its rollout amounted to a pre-meditated crime – “ mass murder” – and was comparable to the actions of “ doctors in pre-Nazi Germany”. The programme included an interview between presenter, Mark Steyn, and a guest, Dr Naomi Wolf. An Ofcom investigation has today found the Mark Steyn programme, which first aired on GB News on 4 October 2022, in breach of our broadcasting rules.
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