Journalists reportedly threatened for coverage of Dan Wootton allegations: ‘Blood will flow’
Dan Wootton made a public response to the allegations against him reported by the Byline Times. (GB News)
Blood-like liquid has been smeared on a journalist’s car windscreen in what is believed to be a threat amid an investigation into allegations against GB News presenter Dan Wootton.
Multiple threats were allegedly made against a journalist at the Byline Times days after the publication revealed it had been working on a three-year investigation into the GB News host over allegations made by former colleagues.
Byline Times co-founder and executive editor Peter Jukes said the incident took place shortly after a reporter at the publication was targeted by a phishing email that may have leaked their home address.
An abusive and threatening email then allegedly followed on Saturday (22 July) titled “Over Dan Wootton”, which threatened to “see you at your office” and claiming “blood will flow”.
A string of calls then reached Jukes the following day, including one that said he was going to “regret this”.
“I’ve seen it before,” Jukes wrote in a tweet. “This whole ‘dark forces’ and ‘nefarious actors’ rhetoric from GB News encourages these kinds of threats.”
Jukes made it clear in a statement to Yahoo News that there was no evidence to suggest Wootton was involved in the threats sent to journalists.
Dan Wootton responded to the investigative report, as well as similar accusations made by an ex-partner, in a speech on his GB News programme Dan Wootton Tonight.
Following his return from a several-weeks-long hiatus after travelling to New Zealand, the openly gay journalist accused the Byline Times and his ex-partner, Alex Truby, of orchestrating a “smear campaign” against him.
Describing them as “nefarious players with an axe to grind” and “dark forces” which he claimed were intent on shutting GB News down and “destroying democracy”, Wootton also noted a similar years-long investigation by The Guardian.
“The criminal allegations being made against me are simply untrue,” Wootton continued. “I would like nothing more than to address those spurious claims, I could actually spend the next two hours doing so, but, on the advice of my lawyers, I cannot comment further.”
Jukes also mentioned that the timeline of threats and the incident involving blood-like liquid on the reporter’s windscreen “could be a coincidence.”
However, he accused Wootton of stoking tensions with the rhetoric used in his response speech.
“This is a very Trumpian tactic. Trump was alleged to have broken various US laws, and rather than address those issues of fact, he said it’s a conspiracy and a witch hunt,” Jukes said.
Wootton and Byline Times crowdfund for legal costs
Following the publication of the investigative report, both Dan Wootton and the Byline Times have launched crowdfunders in anticipation of legal action.
In his petition, Wootton accused the Byline Times of eschewing “all journalistic, legal and moral practices” in its report, which he claimed was defamatory and untrue.
Wootton claimed that the report is nothing more than an attempt to silence him, which he alleged was also happening with organisations such as the right-wing Free Speech Union and the Legatum Institute.
“Am advised that I have a good case for legal action, and Byline is already on notice of my legal complaint,” Wotton’s petition continued. “I need your help to fight the false allegations and innuendo that is being spouted on social media to cancel someone with political views that challenge the orthodoxy.”
So far, the petition has raised £35,600 of its £150,000 goal at the time of reporting.
Meanwhile, the Byline Times launched a fundraiser which aims to “help us to keep exposing wrongdoing in the national media.”
The petition reads that the money would go towards combatting “legal threats,” as well as helping the publication to “put its head above the parapet”.
“Byline Times has no oligarchs, adverts or subsidies. Our work is paid for by our readers. Independent, investigative journalism – outside of the system. This is why we can bring you the story the other papers won’t.”
The petition has, so far, raised over £46,000 of its £32,500 goal at the time of reporting.
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