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Quick thread on #GBNews. No one's saying GBNews should be banned, nor are they opposing 'free speech'. Never mind that right wing contrarian voices already hugely dominate our media, disproportionately loudly (Hartley-Brewer, Peter Hitchens, Allison Pearson, Toby Young et al). 1/
A. Neil was BBC for 1/4 of a century + 13 years at Spectator, so isn't exactly a silenced voice. He's entitled to his views & has been a very effective journalist at times (BoJo empty chair during the election for instance). He's not exactly 'woke' and has huge following BUT...2/
Problem is that GB news has already positioned itself as 'anti woke', rejecting metropolitan elite, a voice for the unheard (they aren't unheard, they're very loud) & allowed itself to be spun as the 'UK Fox News' (nowhere have they denied this).They've recruited accordingly. 3/
We know where this proposition leads, as we've just seen it unfold in the USA, with almost catastrophic consequences for democracy & deaths on Capitol Hill. The angry mob was enlivened by the kind of media GB News says it wants to emulate. This is the problem, in a nutshell. 4/
GB News knows that to get attention it will need to be edgy, surf the waves of Ofcom acceptability, and it will use divisive content and controversy to attract audiences - shock jock therapy harnessing the Farage/Laurence Fox brigade. And in a democracy, that's fair enough. 5/
It's inevitable that the channel will deploy merchants of division to gain viewers (they've said as much), thereby giving a platform to people whose views encourage a climate of intolerance and ignorance. WE'VE JUST SEEN ALL THIS IN AMERICA. Do we want or need it here? Truly? 6/
Our point is only that brands may want to avoid advertising on such an outlet - many people don't want their money used to further the already deep divisions in society, over #Brexit, immigration, #COVID19 and so many other issues. It's legitimate to support @StopFundingHate 7/
And as for campaigning on that before the Channel has begun to broadcast, it's a preventative measure, as once the station has traction it's already too late. This isn't a complicated point - it's like buying a fire extinguisher before you set fire to your house. 8/
The people that @StopFundingHate have so enraged are very quick to call for a boycott of a supermarket when it supports #BlackLivesMatter 
or #Pride, or Ben & Jerry's for standing up for #refugees. Their hostility to @StopFundingHate is totally illogical and hypocritical. 9/
or #Pride, or Ben & Jerry's for standing up for #refugees. Their hostility to @StopFundingHate is totally illogical and hypocritical. 9/
None of this is a point against the individuals who want to set up GB News, or their audience. It's a question about where this leads us, and the fact there isn't exactly a gap in the market for the kind of media narrative they want to build. Anti-woke is everywhere...10/
...in print, TV, radio, social media, podcasts & also deeply entrenched in the actual government that runs Britain. The idea that there's some silent majority with no voice is palpable nonsense. And brands would be wise to avoid the risk of association with its extremities. ENDS.
