GB News hit with over 2,000 Ofcom complaints after guests’ anti-LGBTQ+ comments
Based And Bougie and Caroline Farrow on GB News (GB News)
GB News has been hit with more than 2,000 Ofcom complaints relating to comments about the LGBTQ+ community from two guests.
The Saturday Five, which aired on 20 June, has received a total of 1,927 complaints over two weeks. They relate to comments made by a guest who goes by “Based and Bougie”.
The comment came while discussing the recent trial of Jamie Varley, a gay man who was found guilty of murdering and sexually abusing his adopted son, and sentenced to a whole life order.
What Based and Bougie said
Based claimed: “There is no denying, and I can’t pull up the evidence now but people can easily research this, that gay men and gay couples are not only prone to more domestic abuse amongst each other, but child sexual assault with their adopted children.”
Another guest challenged her, saying: “Where is the evidence for this?”
She continued: “I don’t have the evidence right now. I’ve seen it and when I go online after this I will post it. But the statistics are out there.
“They’ve been proven time and time again that gay men are more prone to sexual deviancy. I’m not saying this is the case for all men, but the statistics are out there.”
Based and Bougie’s evidence
On 23 June, she presented her evidence on X, linking to two studies which related to child custody, authored by Paul Cameron, an American psychologist who has published a number of controversial studies claiming children raised by LGBTQ+ parents are more likely to suffer abuse or trauma. The Southern Poverty Law Center describe him as an anti-gay extremist. Cameron’s work has been criticised for relying on flawed samples, and has widely been discredited. He was also expelled from the APA in 1983 for non-cooperation in an ethics investigation, while other bodies – including the American Sociological Association and the Canadian Psychological Association – have accused him of misrepresenting social science research.
Another of Based’s posts linked to a study about “LGBQ” people reporting “higher rates of adverse childhood experiences than straight people”, such as sexual or emotional abuse, and having “worse mental health as adults”.
A response from Grok disputed Based’s claim that her evidence supported what she had said.
Caroline Farrow complaints
GB News also received 257 Ofcom complaints over a 5 July episode of Alex Armstrong Tonight, in which guest Caroline Farrow spoke about whether Pride was suitable for families.
She said: “The problem is that Pride is not about gay rights. It has become about celebrating every single sexuality that isn’t heterosexuality, including some very bizarre and unhealthy kinks and quirks, you know, like furries and bestiality and even minor attracted, they call themselves, minor attracted people. Paedophiles.”
Another guest, former Lib Dem councillor Mathew Hulbert, could be heard challenging her, saying: “Not at all.”
The claim that “minor attracted people” or “MAP” have been added to the LGBTQ+ umbrella is false, and has been used by anti-LGBTQ+ people to link the community with paedophilia.
Rich Ferraro, of GLAAD, previously told USA Today that “P” meaning “pedosexual” had not been added to the LGBTQ+ acronym and denounced any suggestion that it was accepted.
Ferraro said: “No LGBTQ organisation has condoned pedophilia or advocated for a ‘P’ to be added to the acronym in support of pedophiles. It pains me to have to clarify that no, the LGBTQ community does not embrace pedophilia, and LGBTP is not an acronym used or supported by the LGBTQ community.”
TikTok user Liam Rondi, who has shared a number of videos debunking both Based and Bougie and Caroline Farrow’s claims, said in one video: “Her claims aren’t true and ‘MAPs’ is a far right hoax that’s at least a decade old and traces back to websites such as 4chan.”
A GB News spokesperson told PinkNews: “These comments were expressed within a live debate by a contributor. They were her own views, and do not reflect the views or editorial position of GB News. Anyone watching the debate would have noted the comments were robustly and repeatedly challenged by two other contributors. GB News takes its responsibilities as a regulated broadcaster seriously and complies with all of its obligations under the Ofcom Broadcasting Code.
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