Dan Wootton finally suspended by GB News after backlash over Laurence Fox interview
GB News has taken action over the shocking comments made on Dan Wootton’s Tuesday night show
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.GB News has suspended Dan Wootton following comments made on his programme by Laurence Fox, the broadcaster said.
It comes after Laurence Fox was formally suspended by GB News and taken off air immediately following comments he made about a female journalist which have been described as “unacceptable, unjustifiable and indefensible”.
Speaking on Tuesday night during an appearance on Wootton’s show, Fox made a series of remarks about Ava Evans, the political correspondent for online news site Joe, including asking: “Who would want to shag that?”
On Wednesday evening, GB News said in a statement on X, formerly Twitter: “GB News has suspended Dan Wootton following comments made on his programme by Laurence Fox last night.
“This follows our decision earlier today to formally suspend Mr Fox. We are conducting a full investigation.”
Earlier, the news channel also said it would be “apologising formally to Ms Evans today”. However, at 1pm, Ms Evans, who was left feeling “physically sick” by Monday night’s footage, said on X: “I haven’t had an apology yet if anyone was wondering.”
The outburst from Fox about Ms Evans came in response to her discussion on male mental health during an episode of BBC Politics Live on Monday (25 September).
Speaking to Wootton during the live broadcast, Fox said: “We’re past the watershed so I can say this: show me a single self-respecting man that would like to climb into bed with that woman, ever, ever, who wasn’t an Incel?
“That little woman has been spoon fed oppression day after day after day, starting with the lie of the gender wage gap. And she is sat there, and I’m going like “if I met you in a bar and that was, like, sentence three, (the) chances of me just walking away are just huge.”
Laughing, Wootton replied: “Well, look, she, I’m just going to provide a touch of balance from her because she did actually respond to this earlier today, saying that she regretted her comments but she didn’t apologise.”
The comments from Fox have been strongly condemned, with Conservative MP Philip Davies, who hosts a show on GB News, saying in a statement: “Laurence Fox’s disgraceful remarks were completely unacceptable, unjustifiable and indefensible.”
But there has also been heavy criticism of Wootton’s handling of the exchange.
On Wednesday morning, Wootton, having already made an initial apology to Ms Evans on X, posted a further statement, describing his lauging reaction to Fox’s comments as “shock and surprise in an off-guard moment”.
He wrote on X: “Having looked at the footage, I can see how inappropriate my reaction to his totally unacceptable remarks appears to be and want to be clear that I was in no way amused by the comments.
“I reacted as I did out of shock and surprise in an off-guard moment while working out how to respond as he continued to speak by searching for tweets @AvaSantina had sent earlier in the day while having them read out in my ear at the same time. However, I should have intervened immediately to challenge offensive and misogynistic remarks.
“I apologise unreservedly for what was a very unfortunate lapse in judgment on my part under the intense pressure of a bizarre exchange. I know I should have done better. I’m devastated that I let down the team and our supportive GBN family.
“We seek to tackle the issue and not the person, which I intend to stress again on air tonight.”
But Ms Evans said she did not want to hear from Wootton, who she said called her “multiple times” on Tuesday night. She told her media organisation’s podcast, Pubcast: “I was getting calls up until one o’clock in the morning, voicemails… I don’t want to hear from him. This is actually nothing to do with me.
“This is a network problem, this is a presenter, guest, gallery, production issue that is nothing to do with me. I just so happen to be the person they’re talking about but I’m not in the conversation… It’s not to do with me and that’s what makes me feel most sick about it.”
It has been a difficult few months for Wootton who has faced accusations of potential criminal behaviour by allegedly using a pseudonym and offering newspaper colleagues money for sexual material. The presenter has strongly denied the allegations.
He has been suspended by MailOnline while the claims are investigated. Last week, GB News chief executive Angelos Frangopoulos said the channel was continuing to “monitor” the allegations. There is no current police investigation, said the Met Police last month.
Meanwhile, Fox has today stood by his remarks and appeared to put the blame back onto GB News producers, by revealing a series of text messages outlining what he had planned to discuss prior to the segment. In a post to his social media account, he said: “It’s called free speech.”
Ofcom has said it received a “number of complaints” over the broadcast. A regulator spokesperson said: “We can confirm we’ve received a number of complaints about comments made by Laurence Fox on GB News last night. We are assessing these complaints against our broadcast rules and will publish the outcome as quickly as possible.”
More follows on this breaking news story....
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments