Simon McCoy

Yes it's about now when those who've taken VR would be leaving (as a lot are), right before the beginning of the next financial year.

Indeed, it does look like they're going down the Sky News Australia route. A perfectly balanced rolling news product by day and opinion at night.

One thing I will say about GB News that's different: their press releases are pre-written Mirror/Buzzfeed articles in plain sight. I don't think I've ever seen a press release quoting word-for-word a funny thing a new hire did at a competitor.

I do wonder what morale is like at the Beeb right now in general, with the various cuts and new 'visions' that have been implemented in recent years, and the number of established names on-screen and in production who've moved on. Simon McCoy noted on twitter what a shame it was that the Beeb's own article on Clive Myrie getting Mastermind didn't mention the News Channel, even though that's where Clive established himself as presenter and that he'll continue to present there. Taking an opportunity to work somewhere new and vibrant, when your own position at the Beeb has little long-term security, probably makes some sense.

And I'm honestly far more likely to give GB News a try now that I see the likes of Simon McCoy on there than I was previously. People were concerned with the conservative slant Times Radio would have, but it's struck a good balance and has hardly hurt the reputations of John Pienaar and the like. And if Simon McCoy can combine his trademark personality, interview skill and ability to produce viral moments/clips on GB News, he'll be a very smart hire.

Yes I always think it's a bit silly to use your current affiliation in your social media handle, MPs make that mistake too

I notice (because I tried) that @GBNSimonMcCoy has been taken already. Not necessarily by him of course

Who's hosting and what the slant is can be deceiving, too. Nicole Wallace, a veteran Republican political strategist and advisor, has developed into a very strong broadcaster on MSNBC's 4-6pmET slot, which is far from a conservative programme. And despite being a left-leaning news channel, they employ mostly established, objective news correspondents to hold down their daytime programming. Their running orders may be politically aligned in terms of which stories attract what attention in the running order, but not how they're covered necessarily. And a lot of that is likely about selecting the stories likely to attract and appeal to their viewership, rather than it be ideologically-minded. Even places like Fox News have employed reputable presenters in the past, such as Shep Smith or Alisyn Camerota. Despite Fox News's undeniable right-wing agenda, Shep Smith's programmes were always far more balanced and reputable.

I think GB News is going to end up far more like LBC, where the channel as a whole has little obvious voice or agenda, and where viewers/commentators judge each 'host' or programme on its own terms. In that sense, I see McCoy and Brazier's hirings as akin to Eddie Mair, John Pienaar or Shelagh Fogarty's departures from the BBC. If I were Sky or ITN or the Beeb, I wouldn't hesitate to hire any of them back.

Not sure where the 'sounds like he'll be doing a lot of OBs' has come from, though. The first paragraph of the press release literally states he's presenting an afternoon slot. What I hope is that he gets to spend more time interviewing and reporting than throwing to endless news reports or pre-recorded pieces. The BBC News Channel, after all the cuts and changes, feels more like a never-ending series of BBC 1 news bulletins than ever, and that probably wastes a lot of their on-screen broadcasters' talents when 15-20 minutes of every half hour is them sitting waiting to be cued again.

I don't think they'd be able to get the likes of Brazier and McCoy unless there were guarantees about the bulletins they'd anchor wouldn't be anything less than what they're doing now.

Sky News Australia has managed to pull off a two-tier service. Daytime is editorially no different to Sky News UK, which leaves the talk radio opinion format in an evening block, so they're catering to two different audiences, those who want impartial news by day and those at night who are more likely to listen to conservative talk radio.

I think those who have been enthusing about getting echo chamber news in the style of Fox News at least in daytime hours will be disappointed as the impartial news block will give the channel credibility while allowing for opinion in peak as a block.

McCoy was one of the Sky News' pre-launch signings in 1988 when Andrew Neil was running it.

They separated he is now is a relationship with emma samms

I wonder if Andrew Neil let the cat out of the bag a little prematurely, given his tweet came 40-odd minutes before the official GB News announcement and while Simon was on-screen in his last day at his current employer. LBC held back the Eddie Mair signing until a few days after he'd left the BBC, and Colin Brazier and John Pienaar didn't appear on screen again for the BBC or Sky after the announcements they were joining GBN and Times Radio, respectively. Is it not at least good etiquette to hold the news back until Simon's actually left the building, if not tomorrow?

(This post comes from genuine curiosity, by the way, about the 'right' way to do this.)

Are we ready with our rams of papers!

BBC News staff are now threatening @BBCSimonMcCoy with photocopier paper. pic.twitter.com/Ys8D0ciuRr

— Scott Bryan (@scottygb) March 25, 2021

Not sure if it’s anything to look into but Ben liked this tweet. Although I imagine his replacement will be a face more familiar to news channel viewers.

Ben Boulas likes everyone's tweets sent to him so I wouldn't read too much into it 😉