US Secret Service agents have revealed a teenager was behind a Facebook survey asking whether President Barack Obama should be assassinated.
The agency says it has spoken to the juvenile and his parents and determined there is no intent to harm the president.
This turn of events can’t be unknown to the BBC, and given the evident interest in the story it seems a strange editorial decision not to provide an update explaining that it was just a stupid kid doing a very stupid thing. Why would the BBC not be keen to allay the fears of its readers? Was the bland denouement such a disappointment to BBC journos that not one of them can be bothered reporting on it?
If the BBC does decide to update the story, the following information from Michael Deacon might be worth including:
But try typing “George Bush” and “die” into Facebook’s search engine.
You’ll be hit by a Niagara of groups with titles such as “George W Bush should die”, “I vote that George Bush can die”, “If this group reaches 1,000 [members] then George Bush will die”, “I want George Bush to die”, “Die Bush die”, “George Walker Bush should be killed”, “Will someone please kill George W Bush”…
These groups were there while George W Bush was in office. Eight months after he left, they’re still there.
Also possibly worthy of mention could be this plea for the assassination of George Bush, written in 2004:
The world will endure four more years of idiocy, arrogance and unwarranted bloodshed, with no benevolent deity to watch over and save us. John Wilkes Booth, Lee Harvey Oswald, John Hinckley Jr. — where are you now that we need you?
That was Charlie Brooker, Guardian columnist and now, er, BBC TV presenter.
Emily & co on the BBC news Channel are reacting as if Obama has been assassinated by the kleptocracy that is the IOC, with them having ignored Obama’s advocacy for Chicago & eliminated the city in the 1st round of voting for the 2016 Olympics.
Haha! James Pearce is devastated. He was practically wetting himself over The First Lady’s speech, and seemed sure that He would bring the Olympics to Chicago.
Shame, they can have the 2012 too.
Regarding O’bama, poor BBC, whipping up sympathy for somebody that isn’t dead.
I want me money back.
The utter hate and vitriol directed at Bush was fine’N’dandy according to the leftists and wholly acceptable yet any similar treatment to their messiah brings on a wailing and gnashing of teeth. All the hate filled poison directed at Reagan, the nastyness against Thatcher and all dutifully peddled by the BBC at every opportunity, yet somehow their new kennedy is supposed to be untouchable?
Double standards? you betcha ass!
Of course wanting right wing politicians dead is OK with the BBC, they employ scumbags called ‘comedians’ who spout this crap all the time.
Also possibly worthy of mention could be this plea for the assassination of George Bush, written in 2004:
That was Charlie Brooker, Guardian columnist and now, er, BBC TV presenter.
Classic. But, as some (curiously absent on this thread, thus far) might try and justify… er… ‘different’. Or, is that ‘unique’.