To block GBNews from my parent’s TV?

[goslowly]

My parents retired 4 years ago. They’re both in their 60s, healthy, happy, comfortable financially.

Since they’ve retired they have been sucked in by every single thing they say on there. They can spend an entire day sat in front of the TV getting angrier and angrier. It’s to the point that if Starmer comes on the TV, they shout about how he should be killed.

it’s genuinely starting to concern me. You can’t have a rational conversation with them about anything. I miss my parents, how they used to be before all the conspiracy and anger took over.

I’m genuinely tempted to block it from their tv using parental controls and just pretending it’s some weird fault in their telly. They’d not be able to fix it.

I would be tempted to do the same as you, @goslowly, but I can't see it working. They can just go ahead and find something else, equally ridiculous, to watch. I think your best option, to protect your sanity, is to step back a bit. I would want to tell them why you don't bother visit anymore but of course it would only cause conflict. You aren't going to be able to change them so just retreat before you find yourself more and more annoyed with them and becoming bitter and negative like they are.

I take it you’ve not actually read what I’ve said then?

Of course she doesn't agree with them!

She has two options:

Tell them that all forms of political discussion is off the table when she comes
or
She doesn't visit

And I’ve not knocked down anyone besides those claiming I’m some Chinese communist blocking all thoughts but my own!

They think Starmer is a leftie?? Starmer??

😂
OP has stated upthread that “mentally they are absolutely fine. They’ve just become deeply unpleasant and I want to stop it and get my parents back.”
Fucking hell, so now people in their 60s cant watch their choice of television programme or have views different from yours without it being necessary to refer to a Doctor or Age Concern. Wow 😂
when was last time you visited Age Concern? Age UK?

Yeah, course they do. That's completely believable.

Your post made me laugh OP! I’d be sorely tempted to do what you suggest but instead I think I’d just have to reduce contact, and then when you do see them, as soon as they start banging on, just say that you’re going to leave unless they change the subject.

You cannot make everyone think the same - if we could there'd hopefully be a very different president across the pond

So if the OP wants to see them she can only state that she will not watch or discuss any form of politics when she visits

Even better, get them out or get them to her house so the option isn't there

Have you seen the film below? It's about her dad being brainwashed by similar content.

There was a comment on a thread on here where I think it was someone's husband or dad becoming radicalised so she pretended the TV was broken and he went back to his happy self.

Some older people becoming quite angry and right wing is nothing new, stereotypes are stereotypes for a reason and Alf Garnett and Victor Meldrew were reflective of some older people in the 60s,70s,80s and 90s.

Social media has made this much more prevalent and personally I find it quite sad to watch my, previously balanced and well informed mother, come out with some ridiculous nonsense and consider herself well informed because ‘I learn so much from youtube’

She has plenty of friends who don’t do this and the difference is remarkable.

And it's highly unlikely that GB news is actually saying that Keir starmer should be killed, etc etc.

If that's their take on people they don't agree with then its either always been there and OP didn't notice, or something else is prompting it.

OP you are acting like they don't have capacity. If they do then butt out! If not then there's a whole back story you haven't shared.

Maybe just try to talk to them about how they used to seem happier when they didn't spend so much time watching the news .

People are entitled to their views but saying people should be killed is very extreme. This isn't normal. Try putting this kind of rhetoric in the context of 30/40 years ago to see now extreme it actually is.

Um.

Us 'boomers' feel the same about some Gen X and Millennial's views.

We are NOT all the same. Some of us think for ourselves

I am as trendy leftie as they come and read the DM and watch GB news on occasion, with other outlets including the BBC and ITV/C4 news.
I watch GB news to find out what is going on in some areas of the news that are less well covered in the mainstream media - antisemitism, gender critical news, and often some less mainstream (but not biased) views e.g. related to minorities within minorities - gay Muslims, feminists from the Horn of Africa.

Find them some better hobbies. Go and see them and go for a ramble with the local Ramblers group. Help them with the garden and find them gardening videos on YouTube, or get them a bird box with camera and watch SpringWatch with them. Get them to resurrect the craft hobbies they didn't have time for and go along to a class or meeting of Knit and Natter or Men's Shed Club with them. Or a game they used to play - my DPs play bridge online with my brother (I'm rubbish at it unfortunately!), but I happen to know there's a physical bridge club near me.

Oh please, you can't compare the BBC with GB news! I'm no fan of the BBC but at least they are classed as news and are "regulated".

Calling for the murder of people they’ve become radicalised against is extreme enough to warrant a conversation about how unpleasant it is to spend time with them. So full of hatred for others :(

As a slight sideline, if everyone who felt GB news were inciting hate and spreading inaccurate information reported them to ofcom then they may have some action taken. The same as people do when the BBC or anywhere else overstep the mark.
Unfortunately, the people that watch GB news aren't the people that would report them so they are never held accountable for what they say.

I think you're missing the point a bit - you switch over and watch a range of views and make your own mind up. They don't. That's the issue.

Ofcom has frequently sanctioned GBNews for breaching the rules of its licence and the channel remains under investigation. Its status as a licensed news broadcaster is contested and under review.

Are they honestly 'ranting and raving' to themselves all day?

Because that sounds like mental health issues that need investigating.

Or is this hyperbole and what you actually mean it's 'talking a lot about politics and expressing views which i consider extreme and disagree with'?

Two completely different scenarios.

On the one hand it's an incredibly invasive, patronising and downright morally wrong thing to do. You have no right to control their access to whatever media they choose, no matter how offensive you find it or how concerned you are about its effects on them.

On the other hand - definitely do it. I would.

1984

I did say that of course you can't actually stop them watching GB News. You're being very selective in your quoting there.

But yes. There's no difference between protecting your children's mental health, and protecting your parents' mental health, in terms of reasonable steps you'd take to look out for the people you love.

And yet they don't know when it's a man in a dress or a woman. GBnews does. Facts huh?

Banning GB news and the Daily Mail does not stop people having extreme right wing views. You tube is worse - that is where my younger right wing family member gets his information.
I agree with OP that you can rarely have a normal conversation with someone with those views as most things are turned back to it.