The United Kingdom’s communications regulator is investigating two complaints related to Comcast-owned Sky News doorstepping Nigel Farage’s daughter.
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❓ WHAT HAPPENED: Ofcom, the United Kingdom’s media regulator, will investigate Sky News, run by the brother of former Barack Obama advisor Ben Rhodes, after the broadcaster harassed Nigel Farage’s daughter.
📰 DETAIL: Ofcom confirmed on Thursday that it would investigate Sky News, known in Britain as “Sly News.” This follows a complaint submitted by the Reform UK party after the broadcaster doorstepped the house where Farage’s daughter lives. Farage was out of the country at the time. The party said that Sky’s actions constituted harassment. The party has demanded an apology and a correction. The incident occurred back in early July. It was part of a Sky News report regarding a weaponized parliamentary probe into the Reform leader’s finances. “Ofcom has entertained a complaint from Reform UK, made on behalf of Mr Nigel Farage, of unjust or unfair treatment in the programme as broadcast… We have also entertained a complaint about unwarranted infringement of Mr Farage’s privacy regarding the programme as broadcast,” read a statement from Ofcom.
💬 KEY QUOTE: “You tell your bosses, you harass my family any more and there will be serious consequences… That is what your organization has done this morning… You have broken all the rules, Leveson and everything else.” — Nigel Farage when confronted by Sky News after the incident
🎯 IMPACT: The fact that the complaints have been entertained by Ofcom is likely to damage Sky’s already poor reputation. The report comes a week after Farage returned to Parliament following a by-election (special election) victory in Clacton. The by-election was triggered by Farage’s resignation from Parliament, declaring that the people of Clacton should decide whether the Reform leader is fit to represent the constituency (electoral district) or not, rather than a parliamentary probe.
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