Please use this thread for comments about the BBC’s current programming and activities. This post will remain at or near the top of the blog – scroll down for new topic-specific posts. N.B. this is not an invitation for general off-topic comments, rants or chit-chat. Thoughtful comments are encouraged. Comments may be moderated.
Even more crap from the BBC (you’d think their bowels would be empty by now)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/7120952.stm
Note the dig at George Bush, yet the USA has CUT it’s emissions whilst th eSocialist Kyoto loving EU? er well um er well… hmm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/7120952.stm
Funny the BBC report didn’t mention the EU.
The Beeb’s “Have Your Say” has been careful to avoid donorgate for the last four days when normally it is changed every day or thereabouts.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/merseyside/7125046.stm
LABOUR ex Mayor jailed for benefit fraud. You have to wait until half way through the report to read ‘ ex Labour councillor’. Contrast had it been a Tory Mayor……the party affiliation would have been in the headline, mentioned in EVERY para and doubtless would have included a swipe at George Bush!
Even the Americans are seeing how low the BBC can stoop:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7123365.stm
Hugo Chavez, Reformer
I was startled by this headline on the BBC site: “Voting ends on Venezuela reforms.” At first I thought it was careless usage by a headline writer. But no: the BBC’s second sentence reads:
The raft of reforms would see the end of presidential term limits and the Central Bank’s autonomy removed.
Nor is that all; the BBC calls Hugo Chavez’s grab for unconstrained power a “reform” no fewer than four times, and describes Chavez’s opponents as “anti-reform.”
I wondered whether I had an eccentric understanding of the word “reform,” so I looked it up on Merriam-Webster’s online dictionary:
1a: to put or change into an improved form or condition b: to amend or improve by change of form or removal of faults or abuses
2: to put an end to (an evil) by enforcing or introducing a better method or course of action
3: to induce or cause to abandon evil ways
There you have it: the BBC is on record as favoring Chavez’s power grab. Here is how the BBC describes some of the Communist’s “reforms”:
Mr Chavez says the package of reforms is necessary to “construct a new socialist economy”. ***
One proposal is to allow the president to stand for re-election an indefinite number of times.
Other changes up for approval include giving the president control over the central bank, the creation of new provinces governed by centrally-appointed officials, and a reduction in the voting age from 18 to 16.
There are also proposals to expand presidential powers during natural disasters or political “emergencies”.
Here’s a thought experiment: imagine that George Bush offered a proposal to allow himself an unlimited number of terms; to take Presidential control over the Federal Reserve; to create new states (Central California, Upstate New York, Western Pennsylvania) governed by appointees of President Bush; and to allow himself to expand his Presidential powers by declaring an “emergency.” Do you suppose the BBC would call those proposals “reforms”? No, I don’t think so either.
It’s hard to escape the conclusion that at the BBC, anything that leads to a “new socialist economy” represents an “improved form or condition.”
http://www.powerlineblog.com/archives2/2007/12/019176.php
dave t | 03.12.07 – 9:14 pm |
hmmm…wonder what the reporting would be like if bush tried to institute a “reform” to enable him to run for president again (and again, and again)…
Martin | 03.12.07 – 7:10 pm |
um, did u mean “proxy”? oh, well, it almost doesn’t matter which, i suppose! 🙂
dave t
A few friends of the BBC – the usual useful idiots (more accurately described as the “Stasi in waiting”) – are signatories to this paean to the Hero of Caracas
A few friends of the BBC – the usual useful idiots (more accurately described as the “Stasi in waiting”) – are signatories to this paean to the Hero of Caracas
Umbongo | 03.12.07 – 9:38 pm | #
Fascinating to see how many of our elected representatives lean towards totalitarian dictatorship.
A useful “cut out & keep” guide to those we need to keep an eye on.
Umbongo:
Thanks for the link. Anything collectively endorsed by Livingstone, Abbott, Pinter and Benn is likely to be a paean to stupidity, but this reaches new lows. I’m rather surprised this shameful letter has not been reported by the BBC.
Funny that they don’t mention Chavez’s attempt to rule by decree, the closure of all critical media outlets, the fact that Caracas now has the highest homicide rate in the world, or his alliance with Saddam Hussein and the Holocaust denier Ahmedinejad. Here is an example of what these twits call ‘democracy in action”:
http://uk.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUKN0759583920071108
Fortunately the Venezuaelan people have realised what is coming, and have begun to develop a rather different idea of ‘democracy’ to that of Livingstone, Abbott and their cronies. If the leaders at the BBC had any sense, they would be extremely troubled to be receiving any backing whatsoever from these people.
Bet you a fiver NONE of the buffoons on the paean to Chavez would want to live there! And how can BBC reporters and suchlike support a regime that treats their colleagues in media so shamefully? Oh wait I forgot about the fact that the majority of the world’s jailed journalists are jailed in…Cuba!
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/politics/7125501.stm
This article comes to you via a press release from the Labour Party…..
“This is the dilemma that faces the Conservative Party as Labour struggles with the controversy over secret donations. Many Conservative MPs are having trouble disguising their glee at Labour’s problems.
Many know exactly what it is like, having survived the final years of Conservative government under John Major in the 1990s. ”
“Labour frequently criticise the Tories for the less than transparent financial support for the party that comes from Lord Ashcroft and groups like the Midlands Industrial Council”
Rubbish – Ashcroft has given far less than Sainsbury who got a Government job and lots of lovely contracts for his firms just like Drayton and many others. He is also open about his donations unlike Labour’s Lords most of whom seem to claim back the cost of their original donations via the expenses for the Lords! The unions give money and get a so called £10 MILLION training allowance in return!
What a load of rhubarb! Did Labour ask the BBC to write this to warn off the Tories? Pathetic!
Dave T – have you actually read the BBC report on the referendum in Venezuela properly. It is one of the most overtly anti-Chavez pieces I have ever read. At one point during the day there were three references to his leadership being likened to a dictatorship. This follows on from previous descriptions of his rule as ‘militant’.
The BBC – hating socialism since the Battle of Orgreave.
ps. can you explain how holding a referendum and respecting the result is in anyway ‘dictatorial’? I will be fascinated to hear your explanation.
Allan@Oslo | 03.12.07 – 5:24 pm
John Reith spins in his grave | Homepage | 03.12.07 – 6:12 pm
I have done some checking on Mr Tony Ageh and can report that it is much as I thought:
Mr Ageh has nothing to do with the content of the news website.
Despite his title of ‘Controller, Internet’ • he is not a web equivalent of the Controller of BBC1.
Ageh works for a part of the BBC called ‘Future Media & Technology’ whose purpose, as it happens Foxgoose, is to ‘prepare the BBC for an on-demand digital world’ envisioned by Maloney.
They seem more than usually fond of the title ‘controller’ in FM&T.
Sitting next to Ageh is Anthony Rose, Controller Digital Media Technologies • he’s the brainbox behind the i-player; next along is Richard Titus, Controller User Experience & Design • he’s in charge of ‘look, feel and design’. Then there’s Matthew Postgate, Controller Mobile • he’s the one that gets stuff to your phone. According to the org chart I saw, there appears to be a vacancy for a Controller, Digital Distribution. He or she will be in charge of ‘site-wide technical infrastructure’.
I hope by now you’re getting a feel for the kind of ‘control’ Ageh exercises over the BBC’s internet operations. And it doesn’t include deciding which stories run on the news front page.
Anyone see the report from the BBC News Monkey (didn’t catch his name, he’s the guy reporting back to that Welsh guy in the studio – Hugh something or other) in DC vis the NIE’s assessment on Iran’s nuclear weapons program? He said that a senior Whitehouse adviser, some ‘hawk’, was furious about the news (the opinion of NIE that Tehran halted its nuclear weapons program in 2003, despite saying that they were fairly confident that it was underway in 2005), because it undermined the Bush admininstration’s power regarding Iran. The ‘hawk’s’ name? Uh, well, he didn’t say. I guess we’ll just have to take his word for it…
Stay classy BBC.
Sorry bit late but absolutely extraordinary Toady program today.
10 minute Play for Toady about Darfur with actors making speeches in highly emotional tones.
Do you think the Al BBC is worried that all those thousands of muslims sceaming for the death of Ms. Gibbons might effect the cash we plebs donate for the ‘crisis in Sudan?’
Have they totally forgotten they are supposed to be a news program not an outlet for agitprop theater?
Silly question…
Let’s play ‘Spot the BBC Spin’
The BBC have commissioned another poll in Afghanistan to determine how people are feeling about their situation. A comment free overview of the results was published on the BBC website today:
Afghans ‘still hopeful on future’
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/7124450.stm
A reasonable round-up of the poll statistics, with no spin or ‘attempt to explain’. We find that:
“Most Afghans are relatively hopeful about their future, an opinion poll commissioned by the BBC has suggested.
They also support the current Afghan government and the presence of overseas troops, and oppose the Taleban.
….
The figures indicate that 54% of Afghans think things are going in the right direction, one percentage point fewer than last year, while 70% described their living conditions as good or very good.”
So within the error of these type of polls there is no change in the proportion of people who think that things are going in the right direction.
But wait! this is the BBC, we can’t have good news stories coming out or Afghanistan. Bring on the BBC spin-miesters, and make way for a second BBC story, this time full of ‘helpful’ BBC commentary (spin):
Afghan optimism for future fading
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/7124294.stm
So two ‘stories’ about the same poll, with opposite conclusions, the first a dispassionate round-up of the results, the second full of BBC spin “Digging into what the latest opinion poll really means…..” and you can guess the rest. The whole article needs a good fisking.
The BBC, we spin good news into bad, when it’s off message, it’s what we do.
…Despite his title of ‘Controller, Internet’ • he is not a web equivalent of the Controller of BBC1.
Ageh works for a part of the BBC called ‘Future Media & Technology’ whose purpose, as it happens Foxgoose, is to ‘prepare the BBC for an on-demand digital world’ envisioned by Maloney.
They seem more than usually fond of the title ‘controller’ in FM&T.
Sitting next to Ageh is Anthony Rose, Controller Digital Media Technologies • he’s the brainbox behind the i-player; next along is Richard Titus, Controller User Experience & Design • he’s in charge of ‘look, feel and design’. Then there’s Matthew Postgate, Controller Mobile • he’s the one that gets stuff to your phone. According to the org chart I saw, there appears to be a vacancy for a Controller, Digital Distribution. He or she will be in charge of ‘site-wide technical infrastructure’….
John Reith | 03.12.07 – 10:46 pm | #
I think we’ve come up against one of your secret weapons, JR – employ so many interwoven circles of underworked and overpaid bureaucrats that it’s like herding cats to pin responsibility on anybody – Denis Forman has summed it up:-
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2007/nov/26/bbc.television2?gusrc=rss&feed=media
On the new technology thing. I think you may be missing Maloney’s point. If we have so much server & processor power and bandwidth that we can get full screen, real time, HD content from a vast choice of sources – why would we need you lot to tell us what you think we should be watching?
“Broadcasters” are only intermediaries after all – isn’t most of the Beeb’s output produced by outside contractors nowadays?
I once asked you how much, but never got a reply.
Korova:
“can you explain how holding a referendum and respecting the result is in anyway ‘dictatorial’? I will be fascinated to hear your explanation.”
Err excuse me? The commies hold such referendums all the time. Indeed currently there are indications that in fact the vote was 70% to 30% AGAINST and as usual Chavez is spinning it as very close indeed. You do remember the way the voting figures kept changing during the last so called election…?
From another BBC report:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7124313.stm
” BBC Americas reporter Julian Miglierini says many analysts are pointing to the abstention rate of 44%. He says the bulk of those who abstained are thought to be Chavez supporters who chose not to endorse the reforms, while voters backing the opposition turned out in droves.”
From the one I linked to:
“The BBC’s Americas editor, Emilio San Pedro, says the elections are expected to be as free and fair as all previous ones since Mr Chavez came to power in 1998.” Nothing like hedging ones bets…
Indeed the article I linked to above says nothing about militant or dictators so do pray link to the different one you are obviously reading…..I haven’t found it or anything that says anything derogatory about Chavez yet despite looking!
The point that John H in the States made on the powerline blog was that the BBC call these ‘reforms’ which if they were being made by any other country in the free world would be called Soviet style power grabs!
“ps. can you explain how holding a referendum and respecting the result is in anyway ‘dictatorial’? I will be fascinated to hear your explanation.”
Because ignoring it when you don’t have the power to ignore it would destabilise your government?
Anyway, it seems Korova the student socialist is back. Do you think Pol Pot was a socialist Korova? Don’t even try to deny it Korova.
Korova,
On which planet do you reside? cos it aint Earth, of that I am sure!
Where did you learn your schoolboy ‘AGITPROP’ counter propaganda ploys? The USSR perhaps? As you know, the best way to attack a dissident is to accuse them of the very thing they are trying to bring to light.
Why dont you apply for a job at the BBC? They are always on the lookout for your type of overt propagandist, you should go far!
I know they don’t do honesty, but don’t the BBC do maths either?
Stuck-Record | 03.12.07 – 12:54 pm
Journalists are notoriously bad at maths, but this ain’t a matter of maths. Those 8000-plus comments were the ones sitting in the “Moderation Queue” – which is not really a queue, but simply a place where HYS stores the comments they haven’t published or rejected, but just haven’t been bothered to process.
Once the debate is closed, they no longer show the “Moderation Queue” under the “Debate Status”. Hence the discrepancy.
One can understand them not being able to publish all the comments that are queueing up when they are flooded, as in this topic, but they also do it when there is really no excuse for it – like most of the time.
Bryan | 04.12.07 – 8:38 am | #
I know. I just think it’s intentionally misleading, and VERY convenient.
Just dropped in on the BBC’s main news page and hardly a whisper about the Donorgate scandal, just one small link to the Scottish story:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/
The BBC playing down Labour’s bad news yet again, an absolute disgrace.
Stuck-Record | 04.12.07 – 8:50 am,
Sorry, I missed the irony there.
‘And the poxy BBC think that David “posh boy” Cameron should be careful in case we dumb voters make them all look bad.’
Martin, to be fair, The Daily Telegraph ran a very similar article by Janet Daley yesterday • the point being that nobody likes a bully and Brown has made such a horlicks of the past few weeks that Cameron doesn’t need to push too hard.