Sainsbury’s has stopped advertising on fledgling TV channel GB News after protests led by anti-Brexit organisation Led By Donkeys.
The Big 4 grocer, which had been dragged into the long-running dispute over the station, was accused of caving in to “twitterati morons”.
Led By Donkeys recently launched the hashtag “#SilentSainsburys”, claiming the supermarket had dodged questions to “justify why it pays [presenter] Nigel Farage’s salary”.
“We are a non-political organisation,” a Sainsbury’s spokesperson told i.
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“We advertise across a wide range of media outlets, including TV to reach all of our customers.
“Our latest multi-channel TV campaign, which has now ended, included a very small number of ads appearing during the GB News programme.”
In response, Twitter users have claimed Sainsbury’s “only wants left-wing customers” and have threatened to boycott its stores.
One post, which drew thousands of likes, aped the grocer’s slogan by saying viewers would “eat better by shopping at Tesco’s & Morrisons”.
“@GBNEWS and @Nigel_Farage may not be everyone’s cup of tea but either you believe in freedom of speech or you don’t,” complained another shopper.
GB News presenter Michelle Dewberry claimed the supermarket was acting like a “bully”.
“Opinions *are* allowed, just as people are free to agree or disagree with them,” she wrote.
“We don’t live in a dictatorship.”
Sainsbury's slogan is 'helping everyone eat better'. All us @GBNEWS viewers are going to eat better by shopping at tesco's & morrisons.
— Anthony O'Neill (@Anthony48385960) August 7, 2021
@GBNEWS and @Nigel_Farage may not be everyone’s cup of tea but either you believe in freedom of speech or you don’t. @Sainsbury’s only wants left-wing customers. Other supermarkets are available. https://t.co/G1t59jEpIK
— John Lilburne 🇬🇧 (@BestBitter6) August 8, 2021
This attempt to bully/pressure organisations, in an effort to essentially try to dictate which views are/aren’t allowed, is wrong.
We don’t live in a dictatorship.
Opinions *are* allowed, just as people are free to agree or disagree with them. https://t.co/gpJJ3FTY5N
— Michelle Dewberry (@MichelleDewbs) August 6, 2021
Farage has drawn flack for criticising the Royal National Lifeboat Organisation, branding it a “taxi service for migrants”.
The former UKIP and Brexit Party leader was given his own show last month when presenter Guto Harri left the station.
It comes two months after major retailers backtracked on their boycotts of the news channel.
The Co-op, Amazon, Ikea, Microsoft and Wickes initially cancelled their sponsorships before u-turning amid a social media backlash.
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