Biased BBC contributor Alan writes;
“We have long beentreated to the BBC’s eulogising of China and the delight and envy at itsdecisive decision making, unhindered by the need for public approval. JeremyPaxman only recently telling us ‘China is the great emerging force in theworld, and the sense of apprehension everywhere else must be good.’
But it now seems that long cherished dreams of the return of the Soviet Unionare being dusted off and burnished….the Israeli security barrier may be ahuman rights disaster for Palestinians but the Berlin Wall kept out the evilsof irresponsible capitalism.
Peter Oborne in the Telegraph reveals the BBC have long covered up for Putin…
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/russia/9055097/The-BBCs-distortion-of-the-truth-helps-Putin-suppress-his-critics.html
‘The BBC’s distortion of the truth helps Putin suppress his critics. A revealing documentary – Putin, Russia and the West – is all very well, but itshould not be playing into the hands of a tyrant.The BBC has heavily bought into prime minister Putin’s own narrative…itsdescription of the programme: “How the great Soviet superpower, crushed andhumiliated, has been resurrected in the form of Vladimir Putin’s new Russia.” ‘
Whilst the BBC happily hunts down every British or American soldier for theslightest misdemeanour Oborne says it is happy for the Russians to devastateChechnya….’this Chechen conflict was an event of hideous brutality, borderingon a genocide: the BBC presents it as something closer to a routine counter-insurgency.’ ‘The overall narrative, I believe, is slanted towards Putin, a fact whichbecomes more disturbing when the identity of the main consultant to the seriesis taken into account.
Angus Roxburgh is well known to the British public as a former BBC Moscowcorrespondent. Much more relevant is the fact that Mr Roxburgh was a publicrelations consultant to the Kremlin for three years between 2006 and 2009.
The Guardian correspondent Luke Harding records in his recent book, MafiaState, “the BBC Moscow bureau in particular is extremely reluctant to report onstories that might offend the Kremlin”.
Some good judges believe that this outcome (of the Russian elections makingPutin President again) might plunge Russia into a new dark age. How fortunatefor Putin that he has a useful idiot in Jonathan Powell and a fearful newsorganisation like the BBC to make life easy for him.”
“the BBC Moscow bureau in particular is extremely reluctant to report on stories that might offend the Kremlin”.
Old habits die hard.
I watched part of the BBC take on Putin last night. I was a little taken aback to find that the editorial line in the documentary was that Russia was within her rights to crush Georgia in 2008. Where’s the good old BBC sticking up for the underdog?
“.the Israeli security barrier may be a human rights disaster for Palestinians”
Gee I guess all those damned Jews who got blown up by Hamas/Islamic Jiahd were not really human beings. the security barrier works – that is what is unforgivable in the eyes of anti-Semites.
If the bbc was interested in proper journalism, they would use the books of Anna Politkovskaya and Alexander Litvinenko as the basis for a programme about the true nature of Russian politics and machinations in the stated that border Russia. Perhaps the bbc reporters have been frightened off by the way that the Putin regime (apparently) silenced those two proper journalists; two human beings who were able to overcome their daily fear of the Russian authorities, to report on what was and still is, happening. I can’t see anyone in the bbc, or the guardian/observer for that matter, ever matching the integrity and bravery of those two Russian journalists.
Sadly though, the Today team prefer to hamper resuce efforts in Japan, Italy or nice warm places, rather than risk Vladimirs ire. All those student contacts of old probably won`t be much use in fending off the Russian mafia who DON`T play at revolutions.
And even when it`s warm-like Egypt, Gaza and-in particular-Syria, once again, the BBC are hardly quick to claim the airmiles…and that`s when Ryanair get a bashing on the billing.
Even the likes of Fisk, Pilger showed courage in their early days…imagine Evan Davis going through a metal detector in Harare!
That`s OUR BBC….dare we face our kids?
Yes, also funny how much safer it is to criticise the USA, or George Bush. Criticise Putin and you could easily end up with a pill in your wine like Alexander Litvinenko did.