Losses deepen at GB News as network moves to fend off rival TalkTV

theguardian.com:

Financial losses at GB News grew substantially last year to more than £30m, as the right-leaning news channel invested in hiring presenters to combat the launch of rival TalkTV.

The controversy-prone channel racked up a pre-tax loss of £30.7m in the year to the end of May 2022, a period in which it hired former Ukip leader Nigel Farage to host a nightly primetime show.

Rupert Murdoch’s rival TalkTV launched in April last year, spearheaded by marquee signing Piers Morgan’s daily show Uncensored.

More recent GB News hires have included Conservative MPs Jacob Rees-Mogg, Esther McVey and Philip Davies – and earlier this month Lee Anderson, the outspoken Tory party deputy chair.

TalkTV landed Nadine Dorries, the former Tory culture secretary, who launched her Friday night chatshow in February with a Boris Johnson interview.

GB News has weathered on- and off-air turmoil since launching in June 2021 and has found it difficult to win over advertisers wary of its reputation as the “British Fox News”.

Last week, regulator Ofcom ruled broke impartiality rules for misleading viewers about Covid-19 booster shots.

GB News made £3.6m in turnover over the year, with the two biggest streams made up of £3m from advertising revenue and just over £550,000 in digital revenue.

The company reported a bill of £12.75m for its 175 staff at the end of May last year, up from 16 employees and less than £1m a year earlier when it was in start-up mode.

Despite the ballooning losses, up from £3m when GB News filed its first public financial report for 2021, the company said it continues to have the support of its backers for foreseeable future.

“The company’s aim is to champion robust, balanced debate and to provide a range of perspectives on the issues that