[Update added]
Two stories involving American politicians who have been embarrassed by photos on the internet. One was a little-known first-time candidate standing for the House of Representatives last year, the other is a prominent, well-known congressman who has been in the House of Representatives for over 12 years and has designs on becoming mayor of New York.
Apart from the fact that the BBC rushed to run the first story as soon as it broke in the States, and has tried desperately to ignore the second story for well over a week, can anyone spot a slight difference in the BBC’s treatment of the two? (I’ve provided some helpful clues.)
UPDATE. Here’s the report on Weinergate from the Today programme this morning. Spot the missing word.
Richard Bacon, who is doing his show from New York this week, discussed the story yesterday and again there was no mention of the fact that Weiner is a Democrat.
It almost goes without saying, but I’m going to say it anyway – if Weiner had been a Republican we’d have heard about this story a week ago and his party affiliation would’ve been central to the BBC’s reporting.
Sometimes I wonder if the BBC are too nice for their own good.
A complete swine hacks into Weiner’s Twitter account and posts an embarrassing photo of spindly legs topped by a small erect penis draped in dingy gray briefs that no adult male would ever wear — and the BBC just wants us to forget the whole thing!
Instead of angrily denouncing such lewd Democrat behaviour like anyone else would, the BBC has gone all St. Francis of Assisi on us. Talk about a forgiving nature! I wish I had that kind of forbearance.
Maybe the BBC just want us to live and let live, but I would urge them to reconsider. Only a big-ass investigation on prime-time TV will do, complete with humiliating photo of said tiny male organ that was sent to the 21-year-old student from his Twitter account will do.
Just like they would have done had Wiener been a Republican.
There was no hack into Weiner’s account. He claimed from the outset that there had been – but now admits that was a lie.
And of course the Dem is jewish and the Republican isnt.
But thats got nothing to do with anything has it B-BBC! 😉
Why dont you take your Jew hating prejudice and shove it your arse eh?
Oh dear jerker jerker do you have a problem with him being Jewish? so you a BBC supporter then ? yep figures you’d focus on his religion,see we don’t that’s why we don’t mention it !
Yeah, the BBC is so controlled by the Jooooos that they report that the site of the Jewish Holy Temple is more important to Muslims than it is to Jews, have someone with a personal grudge against Israel as their Middle East editor, and trust Hamas more than the Israeli government. Stupid Jewish overlords never do anything right, do they?
Smash and grab raid by the aptly named Lurker Lurker hiding in the shadows !
Whilst on the subject of Nazi uniforms, it would appear that this doesn’t matter as far as the beeboids are concerned:-
http://order-order.com/2009/12/04/ed-balls-privileged-education-in-eton-not-at-eton/
Before Weiner gave his blubbing press conference Andrew Breitbart strolled up to the podium, demanded an apology for all the lies suggesting he’d hacked into Weiner’s account, and then began taking questions himself. Great stuff.
Yes – a must-watch.
Breitbart got a half-apology from Weiner.
But his other main target was the mainstream media who for day after day had followed Weiner’s lead in attacking Breitbart himself, first by alleging he was the hacker (when there had been no hack).
The lefties in the US really hate Breitbart, especially over the ACORN exposures and his accusation that black Dem congressman lied through their teeth when they claimed to have been repeatedly insulted by Tea Party folk outside Congress.
As Breitbart says – it is always “attack the messenger” when the leftie media see Dems or other lefties being exposed.
The BBC has finally been forced to cover this story – which had been running for 10 days already, major headlines across the US media every day. Typical BBC bias by omission – running interference against anything damaging to the left.
The BBC’s US “news” operation remains pathetic.
Not BBC-Democrat:
Joe Lieberman, Democratic Party Senator, on ‘Fox News’, Glenn Beck TV show last night, talking about Israel:
(8 min video clip)
http://www.foxnews.com/on-air/glenn-beck/index.html
An extended video (20 mins) of ‘Fox News’ Glenn Beck TV show last night:
http://thedailybeck.com/2011/06/06/glenn-beck-tv-show-june-6-2011/
Mr Weiner would appear to have a very unfortunate name in the circumstances.
Now, what’s Ed Balls been up to?
Jesus Christ! Mark Mardell is defending Weiner, and making a very dishonest comparison between him and Chris Bryant. FFS.
The lowest of the low, is Mardell. Having a good chuckle at the puritanical US, eh, Mark? Who cares if a Congressman lies to the public an accuses someone of a federal crime just to cover up his behavior?
Anthony Weiner photo row: How the Brits got there first
Perhaps it was years of teasing about his name that drove Congressman Weiner to tweet his underpants.
It could be taken by some as a moment in the country’s decline. After all, the picture shows no evidence of American exceptionalism, let alone manifest destiny.
But then again, perhaps it is a testament to national purity and moral vigilance.
After all, posting pictures of one’s undergarments is the sort of thing you expect 12-year-olds to get up to, not rampant politicos.
Still “lewd” has such a nice ring to it
Mardell doesn’t see anything wrong with it. I’m not surprised, though, as we all know this is a doddle compared to what his fellow Beeboids get up to. But do we really want to take the moral standards of Beeboids as a benchmark?
He thinks 12-year-olds normally tweet pictures of themselves in their underwear? =-O
Roland,
Maybe in his dreams !!!
I saw this last night, and NewsSniffer proves it: The BBC originally called Breitbart a “conservative provocateur”, but a more responsible News Online editor this morning removed it and other bits which reflexively defended the Democrat.
Don’t trust the BBC on US issues. Ever.
Are you saying that we should trust the BBC on non-American issues. ever? Seems rather rash!
Good grief – that first draft doesn’t even state directly that he’s a Democrat, just that he “defended Democratic priorities”, down in the penultimate paragraph. And it took them until the eighth draft to spell Breitbart’s name correctly (Brightbart, ffs). I bet they’ve never misspelled “Huffington”.
Here’s a different take – rather than what if he was Republican, what if he was British. Charles Crawford imagines a similar scenario wih David Miliband and Guido playing the Weiner/Breitbart roles. Particulalry like this bit:
A pack of lefty lofty media/blogger bigwigs and earwigs (Andrew Marr, Polly Toynbee, Johann Hari, Will Straw, Penny Red, Left Foot Forward) spring into action not to censure Miliband, but to lambast Guido for traducing Weiner.
The equivalent is already happening to Breitbart.
I realise I’m probably labouring the point here, but what the heck…
The story about unknown REPUBLICAN!!!! Rich Iott and the Nazi uniform photos first broke on Atlantic.com on the evening of 8th October (a Saturday). BBC News online splashed with the story on 10th October, fewer than 48 hours later.
The Weinergate affair first broke on Big Hollywood on 28th May (a Saturday). BBC News online first reported the story on 6th June, nine days later.
An alternative to BBC-Democrat:
Glenn Beck TV (GBTV), is coming, online –
“‘GBTV Is the Future’: Beck Announces Details of New Live Streaming Video Network”
http://www.theblaze.com/stories/gbtv-is-the-future-beck-announces-details-of-new-live-streaming-video-network/
The BBC website has a quiz based on Weiner’s indiscretion. Second question:
Earlier this year, the “it was a hacker” defence was used by another married New York congressman – Republican Chris Lee. What had he been caught doing?
That’s the predictable BBC ‘Well, the Republicans are just as bad’ gambit!
Why doesn’t the BBC mention the key differences between the Chris Lee case and the Weiner case ?
Chris Lee fessed up and resigned immediately – under pressure from the Repub leadership, no doubt.
Weiner spent 10 days denying it all, saying he had been hacked, trying to discredit Breitbart and others. He set up repeated media briefings and interviews, including with the major networks, lying through his teeth at every turn. And now he has been forced to admit his behaviour and his lies – he refuses to resign. And the Dem leadership is not forcing him to resign.
I hope this all runs and runs. But without the Repubs chasing him – the media and bloggers will harry him mercilessly. The longer he hangs on, the more damage to the Dems.
Chris Lee was a relative nonentity. Weiner has been a high-profile Dem, often on TV – an attack-dog for the left.
Only Weiner accused someone else of committing a federal crime, which Mardell completley ignores (or just doesn’t realize it because he puts the ‘ick’ in ‘thick’).
John,
If all lying Democrats resigned, the USA would be without a President.
And here, folks, is the cutting interview with Republican Presidential hopeful (1%) Fred Karger. (Who?) Neither Republican nor Democratice friends knew who the hell he was. Howvere the BBC gave him 30 minutes of airtime. (Presumably they asked Sarah Palin…?)
http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/p00gy4hk/Hardtalk_Fred_Karger_US_Republican_Presidential_contender/
So why Karger, you may ask? Well, let’s see, he’s gay and against a number of Republican positions. Perfect! Now the BBC can ask a number of leading questions and trash the Republicans on the way. Karger answered them (sort of) but the damage was done.
Questions chosen to be asked are important, In this case more important than karger’s answers. NB. Questions define the debate. That’s why Tony Benn never answered them.
Who? I’ve never heard of him. What about Herman Cain, BBC? Unreal and sad.