Thought on New Labour’s blogging operations
First Derek Draper launched Labour List, then Ed Miliband started plugging Labour Space, John Prescott started his Go Fourth campaign/blog, and now Alastair Campbell has joined the fray. You can hardly accuse the Labour party of now ignoring blogs hey?
Note too, that yesterday Huffington Post made history by being the first blog allowed to a Presidential press conference.
What to make of all this? Well, quite a few thoughts come to mind and I’m going to try and keep this as constructive as possible, because though their efforts so far are abysmal, it’s a good thing in my view that the upper hierarchy is trying to engage online.
continue reading… »
The curious case of Hazel Blears, George Monbiot and TWFY.com
An argument between George Monbiot and Hazel Blears is always going to be one which is deep into ‘oh look, they’re both wrong and getting wronger’ territory. They are currently having an entertaining spat in the Guardian. So far, Hazel has called George ‘cynical and corrosive’ and suggested that he’d do more good if he continued the family tradition by standing for elected office as a Tory politician, while George has responded by calling Hazel an unprincipled war criminal. Hopi Sen has already given this an excellent going over, here.
I just want to pick up on one of Monbiot’s points, from his latest article:
“Courage in politics is measured by the consistent application of principles. The website TheyWorkForYou.com records votes on key issues since 2001. It reveals that you voted “very strongly for the Iraq war”, “very strongly against an investigation into the Iraq war” and “very strongly for replacing Trident” (”very strongly” means an unbroken record). You have voted in favour of detaining terror suspects without charge for 42 days, in favour of identity cards and in favour of a long series of bills curtailing the freedom to protest. There’s certainly consistency here, though it is not clear what principles you are defending.”
TheyWorkForYou.com is often cited by journalists and commentators on ‘Comment is Free’ alike, and is quite a useful resource. It’s got a section which summarises MPs’ votes on transparent parliament, smoking ban, Iraq war, inquiry into Iraq war, ID cards, foundation hospitals, student top-up fees, anti-terrorism laws, Trident, hunting ban, gay rights and climate change (here’s the one for Hazel Blears, for example). There are some pretty massive omissions there, which undermine its usefulness for assessing the track record of our elected representatives.
continue reading… »
Why don’t newspapers sell even less?
One of the most unanswered questions concerning the British media is why, when survey after survey suggests that journalists, especially of the tabloid ilk, are trusted only slightly more than estate agents, the papers that lie the most to their readers continue to be most successful.
Last month Edelman found that just 19% trust newspapers in this country, while the latest survey, this time for the Media Standards Trust, found that national newspapers were the least trusted of six institutions and organisation. The police, supermarkets, the BBC, hospitals and banks were all more highly trusted, although they did come second, behind the banks, when asked which should be more strictly regulated.
Why then, when so many don’t apparently trust a word of what they’re reading, do they continue for the most part, to buy the likes of the Mail and the Sun?
continue reading… »
Martin Bright joins Spectator
The former political editor of New Statesman, Martin Bright, has started blogging for his former employer’s arch-rival Spectator magazine. In his opening salvo he acknowledges the tension:
So here I am on hostile ground, writing for a readership I barely understand (although I hope we will get to know each other better). British politics is nothing if not tribal and some will see my move to The Spectator as a gross act of treachery, a classic defection in the tradition of my new colleagues Paul Johnson and Melanie Phillips. But it doesn’t feel that way to me. After more than three years in the political editor’s job at the New Statesman it was simply time to move on. I was delighted when the people at Coffee House gave me the opportunity to move my blog onto this site, which has become Britain’s pre-eminent site for political comment. I’d like to think the ideological tension will be creative.
Meanwhile, his new colleague Melanie Phillips is still silent on the Sunday Times revelations that trashed the original MMR controversy.
Medusa’s daughter and the golliwog
In the league table of personal insults, calling someone a ‘golliwog’ ranks about on a par with calling them a ‘muppet’. Even as a racial insult, it’s not quite the sort of epithet that you hear bandied about at BNP meetings (though they do sell golliwogs in BNP t-shirts at some of those meetings, apparently).
Nevertheless, if Carole Thatcher had said it on air, I don’t suppose there would have been much disagreement about her being taken off air as a result. Nor do I think there can be much disagreement with The One Show presenter Adrian Chiles, Jo Brand and others for picking up Medusa’s Daughter over her use of the word during an after-show conversation in which she blabbed out her ‘off-the-cuff remark made in jest’ to describe a tennis player in the Australian open.
(Why the widespread coyness, by the way, in naming the tennis player concerned? I couldn’t find one mainstream news outlet prepared to say that Thatcher was talking about French player Gael Monfils. Didn’t any of them think it might have been instructive to get his opinion on the subject?).
I don’t think it suggests any degree of sympathy for the use of racially-based epithets, however, to feel that the reaction to Thatcher’s foot-in-mouth has been just a little OTT. When the Beeb doesn’t have the bollocks to broadcast a DEC appeal for Gaza, it feels a mite disproportionate to start acting all macho over an ex-prime minister’s gobby offspring.
Digital Britain isn’t ambitious enough
The government’s report into “Digital Britain” – an 81 page pdf – was launched last week.
As an interim report, it would be unreasonable to expect it to have come to conclusions across the board – but time after time, rather than offering up suggestions or ranges of options for further consideration before decision, the report basically says, “we’ve thought about it, and decide someone needs to think about it some more”.
continue reading… »
News media: not just biased, but rubbish
I don’t know what confluence of planets has caused me to notice this at the present time, but the media are really, really bad at their jobs. I’m signed up to a number of RSS feeds, from the BBC and Sky onwards. I read the Guardian and the Times if not daily then every other day.
And yet there are an enormous amount of stories which are of huge importance but which are receiving minimal coverage, for some reason.
See you in court
A directions hearing at the Royal Courts of Justice earlier this week ruled that the libel action brought against me by former Labour Party parliamentary hopeful, former Respect member, former Communist Party member and current Tower Hamlets Tory activist Johanna Kaschke should go to a four-day jury trial towards the end of this year.
The case centres on Ms Kaschke’s arrest on terrorism charges in 1970s Germany, which she admits; you can read a summary of the issues involved here.
Ms Kaschke is also bringing a separate action against Alex ‘Recess Monkey’ Hilton and John Gray of John’s Labour Blog, which still faces procedural issues. Many of the ‘words complained of’ – to use the legal expression – were not even written by me, but consists of comments from the comments box. While I am confident that all of them fall within the realm of fair comment, the outcome of the case could have considerable implications for the freedom of the blogosphere.
Why is the BBC flexing media muscle in the travel market?
Last November I wrote a piece outlining the worrying implications of the BBC’s acquisition of Lonely Planet for the Corporation’s non-commercial UK neutrality. I’m not the only travel journalist with these sorts of doubts. The BBC Royal Charter and Agreement, remember, is very clear on how the Beeb can and cannot interact with the UK media market:
The Agreement requires all commercial activities undertaken by the BBC to comply with four criteria. …
4. comply with BBC fair trading guidelines and in particular avoid distorting the market.
Of course, that begs a whole series of questions, but this much is plain: BBC Worldwide activities that distort a domestic market in which the corporation is a player are forbidden. This, essentially, was the basis for the decision to disallow BBC investment in ultra-local video last year. It’s the reason that the BBC’s acquisition (through BBC Worldwide) of Lonely Planet should be reversed at the first opportunity. continue reading… »
Palestine and the media
The problem with the Gaza disaster appeal video is that it focused itself on the Palestinians as victims rather than being a call for peace. This is not new. The media’s focus on the Palestinians as victims has been a considerable part of the problem over the last 20 years. During the First Intifada, when children threw stones at Israeli soldiers, pictures were beamed around the world and it became the biggest media story of the day, but the effect on both Israel and the Palestinians was disastrous.
The need of western-world television viewers and magazine readers was to share the suffering of a small people, but children in the West Bank and Gaza found themselves with a choice of going to school or going to where the western press scrum were gathered and be a hero before cameras that told their story to the whole world. Perhaps a billion dollars worth of media was made out of that story, by Reuters, AP and the BBC, but I doubt if the Palestinians received a single penny of that money.
continue reading… »
A left-wing case against the BBC
The BBC’s decision not to show the Gaza appeal illustrates what I’ve been saying for 18 months: that the BBC has lost its marbles. Or to put it another way it has lost its journalistic courage and is now found constantly cowering in face of right-wing whining of bias, as I say in The Times today.
This poses a problem for lefties because we want an independent media that isn’t always being swayed by commercial pressures. But if the BBC is constantly appeasing the right-wing whiners that see a conspiracy in everything, then there’s no point supporting its existence as a powerful broadcaster. The license fee is not only a regressive tax that hurts the poor most, it drowns out independent liberal-left media because most of us at least want some form of an independent media organisation.
continue reading… »
Nick Cohen plays the blame game
So when I read this, my first thought was: is there anything Nick Cohen hasn’t blamed the left for recently? Let’s face it, if the guy’s taking up more column inches than usual, it’s normally because he’s found an inventive way of trashing his former comrades.
Anyway, aside from decrying the lifestyles of the super-rich and the increased polarisation of wealth in Blair/Brown’s Britain, Cohen’s substantive argument is that New Labour could’ve moved Britain away from the Thatcherite consensus, been less lavish in its spending and cultivated an economy less reliant on financial services. Cohen posits that New Labour’s legacy will be a self-harming slavishness to lawless, reckless financiers to the expense of us all.
continue reading… »
Palestinians – not human enough for the BBC
That the BBC has refused to broadcast the DEC appeal on Gaza is shocking. In other words, the BBC have given in to those just waiting to grasp at the slightest hint of bias before they’d even had a chance to. It wasn’t as if this was just going to be on the BBC; the other channels would have carried it as well.
They’ve in effect decided that the Palestinians of Gaza are not as human or as equal as those who have been victims of natural disasters; it seems it would take something far worse than the man-made carnage Israel visited upon Gaza for the impoverished and hungry citizens of a tiny, cut off piece of land to be treated the same as everyone else.
I didn’t think that the BBC’s coverage of the assault on Gaza was that bad, or certainly not as terrible as some of those on the fringes of the left thought, judging by there being another protest outside the BBC today before the march heads to Downing Street. You get the feeling that if the BBC doesn’t change its minds about this tomorrow that they’ll be a hell of a lot more there than there otherwise would have been.
BBC’s politicisation of Gaza aid is disgraceful
The BBC is defending a decision not to broadcast a Disasters Emergency Committee appeal for Gaza, saying it would compromise its political impartiality. This is complete crock. That a humanitarian disaster exists in Gaza is beyond doubt – its own website has describes the situation in dire terms. Even the British government, which has always been pro-Israeli, accepts Palestinians are facing a humanitarian disaster and pledged over £30m in aid. In fact the government has listed the DEC appeal on their website.
In effect, the BBC is trying to deflect criticism from nutjobs like Melanie Phillips, who continually accuse it of pro-Palestinian bias, by politicising the issue of aid. It never had qualms about broadcasting the DEC tsunami appeal a few years ago, even though a lot of the money went to Sri Lanka, where Tamil terrorists benefited. Those who think the BBC is leftwing is out of their minds. This decision is a disgrace.
Far more principled are student organisations, who have now launched Gaza protests and fundraising drives across eight universities.
Martin Bright leaves New Statesman
New Statesman magazine’s political editor Martin Bright is leaving the magazine. He had been political editor since October, 2005.
Update: A press release has statements from the magazine. continue reading… »
Guardian launches ‘Liberty Central’
With apologies to Unity, it seems the Guardian has appropriated this term for a new website to coincide with the Convention on Modern Liberty.
Pilger stays at New Statesman
Contrary to a report in the Media Guardian earlier this week, John Pilger will stay at New Statesman magazine.
continue reading… »
Why ditching John Pilger is bad for the left
New Statesman magazine is ditching John Pilger as one of its regular columnists, as Dave Osler points out. Keep in mind I’m not one of Pilger’s biggest fan following his race-baiting in calling Obama “a glossy Uncle Tom”.
Nevertheless, I think this is a bad idea for two reasons.
continue reading… »
Why are leftwing publications so dull?
I have in the past worked for Tribune and Red Pepper, and written for New Statesman and the Morning Star. For the sake of sentiment alone, I naturally wish all of these fine publications well.
But in truth, these days not even nostalgia combined with a vague sense of duty can motivate me to read any of them regularly. And if such titles cannot get people like me to fork out for a subscription, it is little wonder that they are – without exception – struggling to survive.
Unfortunately there is no nice way of putting this to the many friends of mine, including an ex-wife, who do their valiant best to keep the left press from complete collapse. But the basic problem here is that almost all the content of the above is tailor-made to fit the description ‘worthy but dull’. Sorry, but there you have it.
continue reading… »
Anti anti war
A few thoughts on yesterday’s Gaza rally at Trafalgar Square (photo link at the end):
Actually, my main thought about yesterday’s rally pertains to the lack of inspired political leadership we have on this, and so many other, issues. I have a great deal of sympathy for the people of Gaza, but absolutely none for the self-appointed champions of their cause at this end. Absorbing their rhetoric is a bit like inhaling cement. I stand at protest after protest and wonder why the far left simply can’t connect with the human race, or learn.
But anyway – this is meant to be a brief report, not a pointless bitch, so let’s have a bit on the day’s speakers:
Lindsey German – a woman I keep thinking I want to admire for her intellect and commitment – graced us with a speech that I interpreted as a bloodthirsty ode to Hamas’ right to pursue its end of the nightmare: “This ceasefire is not a ceasefire in any meaningful sense if the Palestinians don’t have the right to defend themselves… they have to have that right to defend themselves when they are under such attack… self defence is no offence, and that applies to the people of Gaza more than to anyone else in the world today…” etc – further proof (as if we needed it) of the SWP’s genius for missing the point entirely as it sprints to salute extremism. continue reading… »
You can read articles through the front page, via Twitter or rss feeds.
» Why don’t MPs pay back tuition fees instead of increasing ours?
» Obama is right to slam BP – and why capitalists should too
» Why does Phillip Blond see civil cohesion as a security issue?
» So what if the Labour candidates went to Oxbridge?
» Last night’s Labour hustings: will it get interesting or turn to torture?
» It’s now down to Ken to win London for Labour
» The Labour people need
» Blog Nation: what would you like to see discussed?
» The Labour leadership’s token contender.. and it’s not Diane Abbott
» In defence of these fraternal nominations
» Is this the end for the socialist left?
|
26 Comments 66 Comments 20 Comments 12 Comments 10 Comments 18 Comments 4 Comments 25 Comments 49 Comments 31 Comments |
|
LATEST COMMENTS » sally posted on Complete tits » Joanne Dunn posted on How many cabinet MPs went to private schools? » Lovely Lynnette Peck posted on How many cabinet MPs went to private schools? » Nick posted on Why don't MPs pay back tuition fees instead of increasing ours? » Bob B posted on Complete tits » Nick posted on Complete tits » Mike Killingworth posted on Complete tits » Mr S. Pill posted on Complete tits » Nick Cohen is a Tory posted on Complete tits » Nick Cohen is a Tory posted on Complete tits » Matt Munro posted on Why I'm defending Ed Balls over immigration » Kate Belgrave posted on Complete tits » Kate Belgrave posted on Complete tits » Nick Cohen is a Tory posted on Obama is right to slam BP - and why capitalists should too » Thomas Hobbes posted on The Daily Mail and "Bongo bongoland" |
