writes Richard over at EU Referendum (complete with shiny new redesign) in his ongoing and very valuable work to ensure our boys and girls are properly kitted out on the frontline, in spite of government and MoD incompetence and widespread media ignorance. Richard writes:
Anyone listening to the intolerably smug Eddie Mair on the [BBC Radio 4] PM programme yesterday, when he interviewed the forces minister Bob Ainsworth, may have recognised a common BBC technique.
Ostensibly, the interview was about the unfortunate Ben Parkinson. He had suffered terrible injuries when the WIMIK Land Rover in which he had been riding had been hit by a mine, and had since been awarded what was described as “paltry damages”.
But, from the way Mair conducted his line of questioning of the minister, it was easy to discern that he wanted one thing – a personal admission from the minister that he thought the level of compensation awarded was “inadequate” – the game here to capture a damaging sound bite that could then be used on subsequent news bulletins, and perhaps be picked up by the print media.
So obsessed with his little game was Mair that he failed to pick up an outrageous assertion made by Ainsworth. The minister had it that the reason soldiers like Ben Parkinson were surviving was “better armoured vehicles”, which allowed them to survive when, previously, they would have been killed.
Yet, as even the Daily Mail story made clear, Parkinson was riding in an “unprotected Land Rover”. Ainsworth’s point, which has some general validity, was wholly untrue in this incident. Had the soldier been riding in a properly protected vehicle, he would have been uninjured, and would still be serving in the Army.
Which is typical of the sort of uninformed or wilful fabrications that Ministers get away with time and again when faced with an ignorant journalist too busy trying to make his or her own particular point rather than trying to uncover the truth or properly inform his or her audience.
Richard goes on to say that he tried to post a comment on the PM programme’s own blog page for comments on this item, Ben Parkinson, his parents and the minister:
we already had good evidence of the life-saving role of these vehicles. Thus armed, I placed a post on the PM blog. It says everything about the BBC that, with now 47 comments posted on the blog, the comment that went against the narrative and pointed out that Mair had failed to task the minister with an obvious untruth, did not get published. Thou shalt not criticise the BBC.
Therein lies the true dereliction of the BBC. Mair had an opportunity to point out that life-saving technology was available and was not used, but squandered it in his attempt to score a cheap point against the minister. Then his dire organisation covers up for him and hides criticism from the public gaze.
Another typical BBC technique – one that we at Biased BBC are happy to help expose, since the BBC seems happy to censor mention of Eddie Mair’s evident ignorance of the facts from their own blog. There’s a lot more in Richard’s post that is worth reading too.
“!Thus armed, I placed a post on the PM blog. It says everything about the BBC that, with now 47 comments posted on the blog, the comment that went against the narrative and pointed out that Mair had failed to task the minister with an obvious untruth, did not get published”.
Now why doesn’t that surprise me? I’m not normally one for conspiracies, but………
Mr Reith thank you for replying to my comment about how the BBC defends terrorists. You paint this so called BBC vision of Innocent of all charges for Mandela as the government which jailed him wasn’t deemed to be legitimate according to the morals of the BBC. Which is strange as the Taliban is afforded legitimate status by the BBC, every time they murder people in cold blood (no jails for Radical Islam) the BBC will defend their actions as just, why the BBC will even promote the Taliban as some sort of superhero who build schools and even find them exciting. Tell Mr Reith why is it ok for the BBC to promote the Taliban as a just opposition (you know like Hamas/Hezbollah and the Islamic party of Somalia) but Bush/Blair and the government of South Africa as flawed.
Hope you are looking forward to opening your Ramadan advent calendar in a few days Mr Reith.
I live a few miles from 51 Sqn RAF Regt home base at Lossiemouth so the death of a 51 Sqn Gunner tonight will hit home very hard up here.
Richard’s latest EU Referendum post yet again highlights the disgusting way that governments (but particularly Labour ones) and some buffoons in the MoD as well as so called senior Army Officers have failed in their duty to ensure that the Forces are able to do their jobs with at least some protection and hope of returning home. Corporate manslaughter too strong a phrase? Not from the viewpoint of this and many other serving and retired Forces personnel!
When Oh When are the flaming BBC going to take Labour and especially Gordon Brown to task for this?
Well said. i’m FED UP with fat boy Brown spouting his bile on the BBC when none of the journalists have the balls to ask him (and keep asking) one decent question.
For example, today Brown was asked about the 2.5% pay rise fot he Prsion Officers and why it wasn’t paid in full. Brown then did a 5 minute rant that totally failed to ask the question.
WHAT the pathetic BBC journalist should have asked is the follwing
“Mr Brown, don’t you think it’s a bit rich, you fat overpaid politicians at Westminster with your snouts in the trough, voting in your own massive pay rises, pensions and expenses at the full rate, yet try to deny a group of loyal workers their full entitlement?”
It’s about time the media stuck together and if Brown refuses to answer a question, they should turn off the cameras.
The BBC and Labour enjoy a mutually beneficial relationship. The BBC will not do anything to undermine Labour, and visa versa. To Labour, the BBC represents a virtual £3.5 billion of undeclareable election funding. Not bad eh!