LONDON — Right-wing British news channel GB News is launching in the United States, it announced Monday, the latest challenger to enter the fray as British media titles beef up their coverage of the Donald Trump White House.
The broadcaster has shaken up rolling TV news coverage in the U.K. with a more stridently right-wing editorial line. It said Monday that it will set up a Washington bureau and launching a nightly two-hour dedicated U.S. show hosted by Bev Turner.
“We’ve seen time and again this year that a decision made on one day in Washington, D.C. is felt the next day in Washington, Tyne and Wear,” said GB News’ Editorial Director Michael Booker. “It’s essential The People’s Channel is right there, reporting live, asking the tough questions, and telling it like it is.”
Booker added: “While others scale back on live free coverage, GB News is investing in our content. Our new Washington investment, our expanded programming, and our brilliant on-the-ground team will ensure we’re not just reporting on the story but that we’re right at the heart of it.”
Since launching with a host of technical problems and high-profile staff churn in 2021, GB News has pushed through teething troubles to become a fixture of British political broadcasting. It hired veteran political journalist Christopher Hope as political editor in 2023, and regularly broadcasts interviews with leading British government ministers.
Nigel Farage, the leader of Britain’s insurgent Reform UK party, also has his own show on the channel.
GB News’ rise has not been without controversy, and it has at times butted heads with Britain’s broadcast watchdog Ofcom.
It won a key legal case against the regulator earlier this year after Ofcom took issue with shows hosted by politicians.
It was also fined by Ofcom in 2024 after an interview with then-Prime Minister Rishi Sunak was deemed to have given the Conservative Leader an “uncontested platform” to promote his election polices.
GB News will enter a crowded U.S. market with a plethora of existing right-wing channels including Fox News, Newsmax and One America News Network. British media outlets including The Times and The Sun have in recent months moved key staff to Washington to report back on developments under Trump.
“The expansion of GB News in Washington, D.C. shows the clear demand for American political news in the U.K. and it will offer a different perspective on the ever-changing events in the U.S.,” political communications adviser Laura Emily Dunn said.
Former Department for Science, Innovation and Technology Director of Comms Abigail Morris, who moved to Washington, D.C. last year, said she would be “surprised if they cover much U.K. domestic news in their effort to win over U.S. audience share.”
Morris, who writes the Transatlantic Tea Substack, added: “U.K. coverage across the pond is really quite limited, with some interest in our political and cultural life but almost nothing about our economy or business news cutting through.”
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