General BBC-related comment thread! 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 also be moderated. Any suggestions for stories that you might like covered would be appreciated! It’s your space, use it wisely
Open Thread
Bookmark the permalink.
and on bbc 2 we now have a party political broadcast on behalf of the John “i have a nice big fat pension, so fuck you” Prescott Party.
Heard on BBC-W just now,
“Obama is the playing the role of the gracious winner”!
Note to BBC mongs, as much as you may wish for it,
OBAMA HAS YET TO GAIN FINAL US VOTER APPROVAL.
back to spooks.. we have muslim terrorists.. threatening to behead a british soldier.
your starters for ten. who will the muslim terrorist turn out to be
1. disgruntled british army
2. israeli mossad
3. american cia
4. russian shit stirrers
5. john prescott
Joe Biden was recently asked some questions about Barack Obama by Barbara West on WFTV’s Channel 9. Old windbag Biden didn’t like the questions so he refused to let his wife be interviewed by the station.
http://hotair.com/archives/2008/10/25/comedy-gold-wftv-interviews-biden/
Will the BBC report on this? Solidarity with fellow journalists and all that…
Surely related to palin in some way
spooks – the deep cover jihadist is so deep cover that he “votes conservative”.
i kid you not.
Channel 4’s ‘Dispatches’ tonight:-
“Don’t Bank on the Bailout” (Hugh Hendry), was very good;
in his persuasive economic analysis, Hendry regarded the word ‘recession’ as inadequate to describe what we can expect: a prolonged economic depression.
While the BBC’s ‘Newsnight’ has had some reasonably good documentaries on the global financial crisis, the BBC seems to have a blindspot when it comes to discussing the failures of Labour economic policies. Channel 4 ‘Dispatches’ didn’t have this blindspot:
http://www.channel4.com/news/articles/dispatches/dont+bank+on+the+bailout/2627582
and hendry offered some damn good advice – stop spending needlessly , start saving for a rainy day, batten down the hatches… all reasonable stuff.
meanwhile on spooks – the bad guys this week turn out to be the Russians.
they mislead MI5 so that a chechen terrorist can bomb a rememberance sunday event.
( one is left wondering – WHY would the russians do this , considering that they want our hard cash for their oil and gas… and considering that the russians kicked the shit out of the chechens themselves.
but hey, this is beeboid world… where islamofascism is never to blame…)
The big problem with the governments Big Spend is that the large capital jobs they want to invest in, eg aircraft carriers, superhospitals, super rail links are all things that will take years to develop and get planning permission for. The other problem is who is going to tender out the contracts –the industry minister Lord Mandelson???? I see this as a potential cockup of corruption.
Give businesses a tax break + reduce interest rates + give us all some of our money back.
frankos -> may i direct to you a different approach… massive government cuts.
and yes, they are getting huge flak for it , and are down 10 per cent in the polls… but i admire what they are doing.. its hard and unpopular – but its better to stop the gravy train now, because the pain will be less in the long run.
no , its not our government – its the irish government…
http://www.rte.ie/news/2008/1025/longford.html
“Brian Cowen said the country needs to make sure it does not go into a borrowing spiral that puts it back to where it was 15 years ago.”
a stark contrast to Gordon Brown and his insane “spend our way out of recession” nuttiness…
it will be interesting to see who comes out on top after all this.
LEAD HEADLINE on the bbc news at ten
“Americans are accused of a TERRORIST raid”…
interesting how the word terrorist is only reserved for americans.
has the bbc become the propaganda wing of the syrian government? this is , after all, a government that is ruled by the Ba’ath party.
yeah . that one.. same party as Saddams.
jeremy bowen – “there two versions of what went on here”
yes of course there is.. theres the Ba’ath party version, where if you dont toe the line you’ll be tortured and put to death,
and then theres the American version.
hmmmm..
and now we get Syrian propaganda will NO COMMENT by Bowen that Syria is a fascist dictatorship. none whatsoever…
For BBC anti-American, pro-Assad’s Syria newsdesk:
“Mass killings and Human Rights Violations in Syria”
http://www.memri.org/bin/articles.cgi?Page=countries&Area=syria&ID=IA46608
Bowen just interviewed by Huw Edwards; talk about a mouthpiece for the Syrian regime!
And of course spouting FCO propaganda about Syria acting as a bridge.
Will Bowen EVER start commenting with objectivity?
sweet jesus.. and they pay Bowen large sums of money for his “analysis”..
christ..
ok.. here’s really WHY the yanks had a go at syria .. and its all free and via this blog..
1. Syria is moving forces to the borders of Lebanon. the attack is a slap on the wrist – a warning.
2. Israeli government is in a state of turmoil – the attack is meant to be a reassurance. and warning to syria not to take advantage of it.
3. AhMyDinnerJacket collapsed the other day , over “stress”.. supposedly. The U.S. saw its chance , and sent a strike force to pummel into the brain of Assad a message – “look, we’re the big power.. not those Iranians.. you’d be better off dealing with us”
4. The Iraqi government is seriously pissed off with Syria sheltering Al Qaeda types.. the U.S. strike has just prevented a war between the two countries. Because, if Obama withdraws troops – who the hell is going to stop it. Better off stopping it now before he gets in.
None of the above was mentioned by Bowen.
woss and brand on the bbc news at ten..
the “he fucked your granddaughter” is tempered down to a mention of brand “sleeping with” his granddaughter.
Archduke I absolutely agree
However bear in mind the BBC’s mindset is that every penny the government spends is wisely used –every time a Conservative talks about public spending reductions some puupet from the BBC asks them how many nurses or doctors the Tory’s are going to get rid of.
We as a nation seem to be brainwashed into thinking that we need huge government and huge spending to survive.
The Irish realisation is pretty much a form of Thatcherisation and might be the only solution to our woes.
gordon brown doesn’t borrow –he invests –I don’t borrow
awesome… the bbc has fallen for Karl Rove’s pessimism …
have a guess what voter block will stay at home because karl rove says that the dems will win it.
extra cookies if you get it…
hint: karl rove is a clever bastard.. seriously clever…
Update for BBC and Jeremy Bowen.
You have presented the Islamic dictatorship of Syria, no friend of Britain, with massive propaganda in your broadcasts for all of today even though Syria supports al Qaeda, Hezbollah and Iran. You have denigrated the US battle against Islamic jihad.
The BBC political line come straight from the London Syrian Embassy.
It is necessary for British BBC licencepayers to turn to FOX NEWS for a pro-Western account.
“U.S. Official: Al Qaeda Coordinator Captured in Syria Raid”
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,444199,00.html
The Irish realisation is pretty much a form of Thatcherisation and might be the only solution to our woes.
gordon brown doesn’t borrow –he invests –I don’t borrow
Frankos | 27.10.08 – 11:20 pm |
and they are getting seriously beaten up about it over there. seriously…
those irish politicos are taking some serious pain right now – mass protests, and being verbally abused in the street.
kind of is like thatcher alright – seriously hard medicine, in order to sort it out quickly.
i truely fear for the uk – the pain is going to be enormous and much deeper, because gordon brown cannot bring himself to do it.
the markets seem to know – hence the flight from sterling to the dollar..
Bloody Hell! Gavin HewitT is a disgrace. He says that attacks on Obama include one that warns about his being tested by an international crisis!
It was Joe Biden, Obama’s running mate who said this!!! NOT MCCAIN.
I love the fact that Justin Webb reporti…complaining from Pennsylvania, saying that there is a ‘risk’ for Obama there i.e. He shouldn’t be complacent.
So bloody biased in favour of THE ONE.
Battersea: You beat me to it!!!! I was going to post that one myself. BBC wankers.
Where do they get these stories about Republican infighting? Huffington Post by chance?
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/10/25/mccain-faces-internal-pal_n_137786.html
jeez thats news to me.. repub infighting?
what the hell is that? and i listen to conservative talk radio everyday.
the infighting happened during the primary season. its like the BBC is some propaganda arm of Obama..
why no mention of Democrat infighting – and its huge.. the beeb has never mentioned the Democrats for McCain movement – ex Hilary supporters…
George R thanks for that link.
Just blogged it.
one point – where the hell are the conservatives in all of this crisis? they should be PUMMELLING the govt over this.
then again, call me Dave is just another Europhile, who knows that his masters are in brussels.
Re: Brand & Rossy
Malicious Communications Act 1988 Section 1
This is the wording of this section as amended by Section 43 Criminal Justice and Police Act 2001.
It applies to offences committed from the 11th May 2001 onwards
(1) Any person who sends to another person
(a) a letter, electronic communication or article of any description which conveys
(i) a message which is indecent or grossly offensive
(ii) a threat or
(iii) information which is false and known or believed to be false by the sender or
(b) any article or electronic communication which is, in whole or part, of an indecent or grossly offensive nature, is guilty of an offence if his purpose, or one of his purposes, in sending it is that it should, so far as falling within paragraph (a) or (b) above, cause distress or anxiety to the recipient or to any other person to whom he intends that it or its contents or nature should be communicated.
(2) A person is not guilty of an offence by virtue of subsection (1)(a)(ii) above if he shows
(a) that the threat was used to reinforce a demand made by him on reasonable grounds and
(b) that he believed, and had reasonable grounds for believing, that the use of the threat was a proper means of reinforcing the demand.
(2A) In this section ‘electronic communication’ includes _
(a) any oral or other communication by means of a telecommunication system(within the meaning of the Telecommunications Act 1984 (c12));
—————————–
Not long before someone makes a formal complaint to the police I would have thought?
http://eureferendum.blogspot.com/2008/10/nasty-party.html
“EU directives alone have necessitated over 7,700 pages of UK law since 1997.”
“between 1998 and 2007 the EU added an average of 942 new laws each year; a total of 9,415. We are thus told that last year 3,010 EU laws went onto the UK statute book and that there are currently 16,980 EU acts in force.”
newsnight – they have a syrian stooge on…
“outrageous crime against humanity”…
oh right. i wonder if Gavin Esler will ask him about Hama
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hama_massacre
ref Gobshite brothers –Ross + Brand
the programme was prerecorded + broadcast 2 days after production –who the hell thought that this was a sensible idea? Surely the BBC needs to have a good round of sackings??
The more the better and we can get back the Money saved in my opinion!
jeez.. gotta love the newsnight election logo..
no bias there ,…
http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/nol/shared/img/banners/programmes/newsnight/newsnight_uselection_08_banner640.gif
(hint : note the “O”…)
Just watched Marshall on the 11pm news, and not surprisingly the article he covered on the election did not contain one single person on McCains side.
Every single person Marshall talked to was against McCain.
So again, where is the so called impartiality of the BBC because the last time I checked impartiality wasnt negotiable in the BBC charter!
Mailman
Regarding Dross and Brandy. James Whale got sacked for less. Someone needs to go into the BBC with a baseball bat and start swinging on these tosspots.
Which time zone is biased BBC in ? I thought the clocks changed this weekend !
Regarding Dross and Brandy. James Whale got sacked for less. Someone needs to go into the BBC with a baseball bat and start swinging on these tosspots.
Martin | 28.10.08 – 12:11 am |
The BBC forced out Robert Kilroy-Silk for speaking the truth.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/3404715.stm
I’m sure if they really tried hard enough they could do the same for these two tossers.
Archduke 12.00
Amazing! Good spot!!
archduke: 11:55 pm
Yes, BBC ‘Newsnight’ was routinely appalling in its political bias again tonight.
To dissect the three main political elements of the programme:
1.) The Labour Govenment’s economic policy: this was annoyingly presented by some guy trying to give us a basic lecture on Brown’s economics from the back of a London taxi, being driven around in the dark. I’m still in the dark. The forgettable presenter showed his political bias in the first minute when he started blaming Tory Government economic policies of the 1980s!
Now this is where the BBC ‘Newsnight’ structure is really Machiavellian in its political bias.
After the forgetable interviewer who left us in the dark in a London taxi, ‘Newsnight’ deviously throw in the ubiquitous GEOFFREY ROBINSON, Labour MP, for his own person slant on how well his Labour government is dealing with the economic crisis. No tough questions for him then. And no diversions on to his financial relationship with Mandelson like:
[Extract from Wikipedia biography]:-
“He is a member of the Labour Party and a former Paymaster General (1997-98). He resigned from that post in December 1998 after it was revealed that he had secretly lent his government colleague Peter Mandelson £373,000 to buy a house, whilst under investigation for fraud by Mr Mandelson’s department. He is the owner of the New Statesman, a left-leaning weekly political magazine.”
Robinson was followed by a separate discussion between Tory Ken Clarke and his Labour equivalent. So the pro-Labour political bias in the ‘Newsnight’ structure is obvious.
2.)The actions of the U.S. forces over the border in Syria were given a full PRO-SYRIA spin by ‘Newsnight’.
‘Newsnight’ with its lack of poolitical context to the conflict, gives the impression that history started yesterday, and that all that has happened since then is that U.S. forces had engaged in military action inside Syria. No context on the nature of the Syrian torturing dictatorship, 3 seconds on the assassination in Lebanon of e.g.Harari,no discussion of Syrian support for Hezbollah, Iran,etc.
And to crown it all, Esler gives an easy ride to a spokesperson from the London Syrian Embassy ( a different one to the one who appeared earlier today on the BBC ). No one was allowed on ‘Newsnight’ to represent a U.S. viewpoint.Total BBC political bias.
3.)topped with a pro-Obama piece with the usual Webb -type variations.
by the way – sad note.. anyone who follows the Hugh Hewitt podcast will know of his stand-in Dean Barnett.
well Dean passed away today…
http://hughhewitt.townhall.com/blog/g/6b7b7be7-f95f-4f1f-9723-63c7dbf0a1de
a decent man, with a great sense of humour. and definitely “one of us”…
a good bloke, snatched away too early.
RIP Dean.
George R | 28.10.08 – 12:41 am |
good analysis. i can see that you gave up by point 3 ..
i cant blame you..
it was so bloody obvious…
the new series of spooks is on now.
your starters for ten.
who will the “terrorists” turn out to be?
archduke | 27.10.08 – 10:08 pm |
By bizarre coincidence we hadn’t been long over here and staying in a downtown apartment in Calgary when one of the actors from spooks got into our lift along with his wife and kids. At first I thought she was one of The Corrs.
He was over here finishing off a film about ‘evil oil companies’ and ‘green’ things. When we started renting a house his wife and kids came over to play with our little one.
The subject inevitably got round to what we did. My wife told them that she was an executive in multi-national oil company.
I said I was retired, and on being asked what I used to do, I said I was a sort of facilitator between government organisations. Which ones? Answer, well you know what your husband acts in!
Interest is generated. Did you watch it? Not after the first couple of episodes. Was it too close to home? No. Was it worse case scenario? No, actually it was totally off the wall and in no way represents what really goes on, total fantasy thats why I stopped watching. In fact we used to ring them up and take the piss by saying ‘not 9 to 5 then’. Well how come when we needed to discuss XY & Z at 6:00 pm on a Friday night you’re never there.
The actor and his wife were charming people but we never saw them after that.
I never blamed them for that tosh but the BBC is really running out of control with spooks, it goes far beyond poetic licence.
Never mind all that –which one of the Corrs did she look like? Not the bloke!!!
Anti Mile Bias
‘Weak’ earthquake hits Midlands
The first 6 versions of this story didn’t even give the distance in miles at all:
The British Geological Survey described the quake at 1806 GMT as weak, with its epicentre 6km from Bromyard.
After the 7th edit, the BBC finally bothers to use the unit of measurement that British people actually use (but only in brackets to show that the BBC doesn’t want British people to use miles)
The British Geological Survey (BGS) described the quake at 1806 GMT as weak, with its epicentre 6km (3.7 miles) from Bromyard.
http://www.newssniffer.co.uk/articles/167470/diff/5/6
The Daily Mail and Telegraph used miles
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1080741/Earthquake-registering-3-6-Richter-Scale-hits-Worcester.html
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/3264567/Earthquake-hits-Herefordshire-and-Worcestershire.html
The BBC: undermining British culture, it’s what we do.
Never mind all that –which one of the Corrs did she look like? Not the bloke!!!
Frankos | 28.10.08 – 12:59 am |
Most definately NOT the bloke. Andrea is the closest.
David Cameron is the reason why you shouldn’t take drugs.
Look at the cover design of his book.
Where have you seen those aesthetics before?
The Dope Show by Mary Manson.
As EURef makes clear today’s political culture has a Weimar like unreality to it. It is decadent and anti-life, image based, sentiment based culture with faux emotionalism; the washed up remains of post 60’s “free love, Charlie Manson = Mickey Mouse” dross.
And drug taking is effectively legal.
The result?
David Cameron.
BBC Drama Shock : Not Left-Wing
This is the BBC, we expect to be force fed left-wing platitudes and propaganda, not given a patriotic tear jerker.
http://www.order-order.com/2008/10/bbc-drama-shock-not-left-wing.html
Today on spanking form this morning, seems Eliot Morley, who betrayed our fishing industry, has managed to persuade the government to include airline emissions in the climate bill (hurrah, hurrah) but wait… as ever they find another spokesperson who claims we aren’t going far enough down this misguided path. What they call balance I guess.
And, yes, the P word is back on the agenda, now the great leader has pulled it back to 8 points suddenly, after a few months denial, Opinion Polls are back on the agenda.
Why would the BBC be so interested in the purity of cocaine?
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7693920.stm
Anon: I have ot laugh at this part of the BBC article on drugs.
“…Users could increasingly find they are ingesting a number of other chemicals added to bulk it out, including a banned painkiller which could cause cancer…”
Oh how terrible that someone might used a BANNED substance in a er… BANNED substance!!!!
Martin “9:39 ”
It is really a disguised health and safety warning to their own employees.
The ugly racist Trevor Phillips had an uncontested spot on TOADY to air his grubby views again.
Phillips thinks unlimited immigration is a good thing and guess what? He says white people are to blame, young whites are too stupid and lazy to compete for the dwindling supply of jobs, if only white youths were not so thick then all would be well in la la land!
Obviously he must think that the draconian equality laws that he pushed for has nothing to do with whites being turned away from jobs in favour of ethnic minorities and EU open doors laws is not a factor, the welfare trap isnt included either of course!
As usual he smugly lays the blame on white people, are they the Nu scapegoats?
Phillips labours under the illusion that just building more schools’N’hospitals’N’houses etc for the tsunami of third world immigration will solve all the problems and of course the not so veiled threat that anyone daring to disagree is a zenaphobic racist Nazi out to stir up trouble!
So in a nutshell Phillips would love to see his power base increase while he blames the native population for not welcoming and being grateful for their own demise and that of their homeland?
If you want to see a true racist in action dont look at the BNP just look at Phillips and his gang of fellow travellers.