Former newspaper editor Kelvin MacKenzie has lauded GB News for transforming British public discourse, claiming the broadcaster has made it possible for citizens to openly discuss topics that were previously considered off-limits.
Speaking on Dewbs & Co,Mr MacKenzie asserted that the channel has created space for conversations about immigration, national identity and demographic shifts without participants facing immediate accusations of prejudice.
"It's thanks to media like GB News that this can happen without people shouting 'racism'," Mr MacKenzie stated during the programme.
The media veteran highlighted how subjects including "the flag, the change in colour and culture of our country" have become part of mainstream debate, marking what he sees as a significant shift in the boundaries of acceptable public discussion.
Kelvin MacKenzie said GB News has raised issues many Britons were once afraid to speak out about
|GB NEWS
MacKenzie pinpointed a specific timeframe for this transformation in British media discourse, suggesting the change has emerged within the past two years.
"It seems to have come to us over the last 18 months, two years," he observed during the broadcast.
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The commentator characterised this period as marking a watershed moment when topics previously confined to private conversations entered the public sphere.
"Suddenly, the issues that people talk about behind their backs, they can have a debate about," MacKenzie explained.
Kelvin MacKenzie praised GB News's role in fuelling national discussion
|GB NEWS
His remarks positioned GB News as instrumental in facilitating this shift, enabling viewers to engage with subjects that had been effectively silenced in mainstream media outlets.
His observations emerged during a discussion about the ongoing legal battle over the Bell Hotel in Epping, where the Home Office is challenging a court decision blocking the accommodation of asylum seekers.
The former Sun editor predicted the local authority would be unsuccessful in their appeal, noting public sentiment had reached unprecedented levels of intensity on immigration matters.
"I have never known it like this," MacKenzie remarked, describing the current atmosphere surrounding debates on asylum accommodation and demographic changes.
Protesters have been taking to the streets in Epping in their continued demonstration against the hotel | PAHis comments came as the Court of Appeal prepared to hear arguments from both the Home Office and hotel owner Somani Hotels against an injunction secured by Epping Forest District Council, which halted the use of the Essex property for housing asylum seekers following protests at the site.
The broadcaster's role in this shift, according to Mr MacKenzie, centres on providing a platform where immigration policy, cultural transformation and national identity can be examined without immediate condemnation.
His remarks indicate that topics once considered inflammatory or divisive have gained legitimacy within certain media spaces over the past two years.