Can you imagine what would happen if the BBC greeted a visit by a leading figure from the Muslim world with a poll about whether the teachings of the said imam were relevant, believed or liked by a sample of 500 UK Muslims? What would the questions be? Do you believe that those who become human bombers are granted access to an endless supply of virgins? Or, should Iranian women who conduct adultery be stoned, hanged or flogged? Should we treat women equally? Should all Muslims in Bradford compulsorily join next year’s Gay Pride march in Leeds?
Now I know there are thousands of Muslims who maintain that their faith isn’t like this – it’s the religion of peace and enlightenment, don’t you know – but the point is that the BBC would not dream of it. They know if that happened, they would be howled down with protests. So why, when the Pope comes to Britain for only the second time, do the BBC feel it neccessary to give themselves a carte blanche licence to lecture us about Catholicism? Putting aside that a poll of 500 people is not a properly representative sample (that number was no doubt chosen to keep down costs), and though I am not myself particularly religious, I do know enough people who are to respect that their faith is not something that can be probed or dissected or analysed by crude, mechanistic one-liners. The reality is that the boys and girls of the BBC hate – as a fervent tenet of their own secularist religion – Christianity of all shades, and they feel that any device that challenges the authority of the Church is fair game. Their opinion-poll approach reduces their coverage of Christianity to a moronic, agent provocateur, embarrassing charade.
Unique.
Complete agreement, Robin — can’t express my anger at the BBC’s persistent double standards and biased coverage on this subject any better than this!
The obvious answer is that people who question Islam can end up with their throats cut or blown to pieces, this is not such a risk for those that question Catholocism.
Yes, the BBC hates Christianity all right. They are so keen to push all the negative stuff in that article that they can’t even report on some basic news about the visit – like a bit of background, itinerary, previous visits – we have to rely on this blog from you, Robin, to inform us that it’s his second visit.
So the BBC jumps in with the questioning of the tenets of the faith in that poll, cheerfully concentrates on the sex scandals (horrific as they are there’s a place for them and the BBC has covered them exhaustively) and then, under More on this story, we finally get a link to a story that is at least as relevant as all this other crap: Pope’s blessing on people of UK.
And where is that link positioned in a column of six? Right at the bottom, of course. The BBC is not even pretending to be impartial in its coverage of Christianity. I guess originally it would have been mostly due to its hip atheism and sneering Marxism. Now of course its Muslim sympathisers and Muslim staff tip the balance even further.
Funny, top dog Mark Thompson is a Christian. That he tolerates crap like this is beyond belief.
The BBC likes Christianity if it ticks all the Left-Liberal boxes. Kind of approaching it from the wrong end, but that shows their priorities. Catholicism doesn’t, so it’s going to get the full treatment. But the BBC would never allow a full-blown attack like this on any other demonination. Except, of course, when Anglicans try to stop homosexuals from becoming bishops.
Mark Thompson may very well be a Catholic who feels his faith deeply but is angry about what has happened to the Church itself. He may be one of those who feels that his faith is separate from the fallable mortals who run the show. Although, you don’t really see the BBC ever giving airtime to that notion. I haven’t noticed any effort to separate the personal belief of the faithful from the Church heirerarchy.
On the other hand, he could be simply wearing his religion on his sleeve for purely practical reasons, i.e., as a convenient shield to raise up against criticism on things like this. He certainly doesn’t come across a person with much integrity, so the latter case seems more likely.
Lets have a vox pop poll on this one (November 16th this year, by the way)
Nassera Benmarnia, head of the Union of Muslim Families, said that they are now three weeks away from the holiday and some families still don’t know where to go. It’s a shame. They started to progress, the consumers started to find a place and now they’ll go back to killing sheep in the bathtub. She wants a lasting solution for the 250,000 Muslims in Marseille, making up a quarter of the population.
She deplored the decision by the mayor made without announcing an alternative solution, and says that the Muslim citizens and consumers are taken hostage.
Martine Vassal, deputy mayor, said that they want, like other cities, to enable Muslims to slaughter with European standards.
Come on, BBC, you know you want to!
Is the Catholic Church obssesed about sex? Not really as there is much, much more to Christianity of the Catholic persuasion than that.
Islam is immeasurably more up itself about sex and riddled with chauvinism.
I think that folk like Tatchell are obssesed with sex. Only he calls it gender. He’s always talking about sexuality.
Most Catholics just want to get on with their lives.
Catholics don’t take to the streets to burn flags and threaten genocide when somebody questions or is critical of something done in the name of their religion. Maybe that’ got something to do with it.
Fear. And it’s a shame it can’t be harnessed for mechanical work. Because that’d mark the first time a Beeboid was useful.
Not sure when it all went wrong, but they (the BBC) DID used to be a little firmer towards muslims.
One of my favourite interviews from the olden days.
The ‘teacher’ can’t even speak proper english…watch her squirm.
Here’s an interesting clip. The Guardian/New Statesman journalist, Mehdi Hasan, acting all progressive on the BBC’s QT, intercut with him expressing more ‘vibrant’ views behind closed doors. No doubt the BBC will still be inviting him back on..
Mick
That was Peter Sissons, of course. One of the few “good guys” – and he had some very harsh words about the BBC’s PC regime after he retired, how it was virtually verboten to put counter-arguments. Including on “climate change”.
The BBc have this habit of either crawling all over someone or demonising there exixtence. As it is with US presidents, so it is for Popes. John Paul could do no wrong and was idolised Benedict can do nothing right and is castegated.
We know why of course John Paul was seen as a lefty (although he wasn’t) and Benedict is seen as “far right” which he isn’t.
In 2006 there were c. 407,000 catholic priests in the world. Of these only a very small number have been accused of paedophilia.
If the evidence documented by the site below was showing the intolerance of Christians I would see the BBCs point (but it isn’t)
http://www.memri.org/content/en/main.htm
As said of Peter Scissons above – this exBBC chap also knows of the anti-Christian agenda of the BBC.
“The BBC is keen on programmes which attack churches and there is a wider secularist campaign “to get rid of Christianity”, an ex-presenter says.
Don Maclean, the former Radio 2 religious programme host, also says the broadcaster is “keen on Islam”.
He said: “you don’t see any programmes on Anglicanism that don’t talk about homosexual clergy and you don’t see anything on Roman Catholicism that doesn’t talk about paedophiles”
http://www.christian.org.uk/news/bbc-is-anti-christian-and-pro-muslim-says-ex-host/
The Catholic Church sees the BBC bias:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/bbc/7982601/Catholic-church-accuses-BBC-of-anti-Christian-bias.html
Unlike the Tories
http://www.techwatch.co.uk/2010/06/15/jeremy-hunt-eases-the-bbcs-fears/
Classic dodge of a defense from the BBC mouthpiece:
“The BBC’s commitment to religious broadcasting is unequivocal. BBC news and current affairs has a dedicated religion correspondent, and works closely with BBC Religion, ensuring topical religious and ethical affairs stories are featured across all BBC networks.”
This is a very careful selection of words. Yes, the BBC has a dedicated religious correspondent. That doesn’t mean the broacasting he does isn’t biased, or even a balance to the bias in the serious news division. Not a valid defense.
And yes, religious affairs stories are certainly featured across the spectrum of BBC broadcasting. But if they’re nearly all from the same biased perspective, what good does that do?
They so do not get it. Or do and think they can get away with it forever.
The double standards of the BBC are now so obvious that many who do not know of this blog are noticing. Today I had a conversation with a couple who found the attitude of the BBC towards the Pope’s visit extraordinary and commented , without any questioning on my part, that had it been a Muslim the reporting would have been most respectful. They also said that it was obvious to them that the BBC was determind to destroy the present government. Many are beginning to wake up. All Cameron has to do is wait. The BBC is too stupid to realise it is destroying itself.
“Had he been a Muslim!”not had it. Sorry about that