Sky News to offer viewers an alternative to Brexit news agenda

Study shows a third of people are actively avoiding the news

Ahead of the EU Council meeting this week and a critical week of negotiations to come, Sky News is launching a new pop-up channel that’s dedicated to Brexit-free news.

Sky News: Brexit-Free will launch tomorrow [Wednesday 16 October] at 5pm on Sky Channel 523 and offer a real alternative to evening news programmes which will be dominated by Britain’s impending departure from the EU.

A study earlier this year found that an increasing number of people in the UK were actively avoiding the news due to frustrations over the coverage of Brexit. As many has a third of people are actively avoiding the news, an increase of 11% since 2017, while more than half [58%] said it had a negative impact on their mood.*

With that in mind Sky News will now offer viewers the chance to catch-up on the big national and international stories – without any fears of hearing about Brexit.

As Brexit continues to dominate the news agenda while the UK’s departure from the EU looms, Sky News Brexit Free will give viewers the choice to filter out headlines about Brexit.

Sky News Brexit-Free will be on-air from 5pm to 10pm Monday to Friday. During this period, Sky News will continue to cover all angles of Brexit on its main channel as well as breaking the big stories from the UK and across the world.

John Ryley, Head of Sky News said: “Sky News Brexit-Free is a bold approach but listening to public opinion over the past weeks and months, it’s something we know our viewers will find valuable.

“Brexit is an historic story that has a major impact and we will continue to give it comprehensive coverage. The new channel simply gives people the option to take a break from Brexit, apply a filter to their headlines and hear about issues away from Westminster and Brussels with a focus on hard-hitting, original journalism.”

*Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism Digital News Report 2019.