I wonder if there are any records of phone calls or emails between Occupy and BBC editors especially with regard to the Olympic sponsorship.
Down with McDonalds and Coca Cola!
Up The Workers…er…As Long As They Don’t Actually Work For Any Successful, Money Making Enterprises!
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I haven’t heard any coverage of this on the BBC.
Its therefore quite difficult ( for me) to judge whether there has been any bias!
Whether or not there has been any contact between the “Occupy” movement and the BBC, I’ll bet there will be no records!
I noted that yesterday Sopel was interviewing an irate punter who was complaining about empty seats in the olympic arenas. The punter told us it was “corporates, McDonalds”. Sopel did not interject. At one time the BBC would have sought to avoid naming a particular brand, (cherry cola anyone?), but they will always be able to make an exception for a manifestation of th great satan.
I’ve been watching RT today, refreshingly free from Olympics coverage but they have been running a feature similar to this.
Also RT is, for the time being, outside the scope of the Labour media machine so you don’t get Labour politicians popping up every 5 minutes.
RT is however known for pushing conspiracy theories.
Some here have highlighted a degree of perceived schizophenia in the BBC attitude to the London Olympics.
I disagree. The BBC attitude has been completely consistent with their usaul line:
All state spending is ‘investment’.
Supranational organizations are inherently a good thing.
Profit orientated private corporations are inherently suspect.
Almost all projects that derive from the efforts of left-leaning politicians are to be applauded.
The present Coaltion Government’s management of all things is suspect and to should be challenged at all times (from a left-wing perspective).
Add to these factors that the Olympics provides a heck of lot of bread and butter for BBC employees – the only down side to the London 2012 is that it is not being held somewhere exotic. Never mind the next one will be. (Rio Brazil….. yee-ha!)
Keep these factors in mind and see how the BBC’s take on unfolding events turns out.
Today we have some hoo-ha over empty Olympics seats. The BBC focus on the evil corporate sponsors. Not so much talk about the Olympic officials and their ticket allocation was there? Could the fact that there has been a clampdown on resales of ticket allocations have brought about this side effect? Don’t expect the Beeb to go there.
Now when there is talk of soldiers and nurses being bused in to fill the gaps, a la Bejing, the Beeb is suddenly cock-a-hoop.
Gosh but the BBC seem to wish Britain were China.
Supranational organizations are inherently a good thing.
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The swimming arena was a case in point. The cheap seats in the gods paid for by joe public were full. The expensive ‘jollies’ seats, in the gift of the ‘Olympic family’, as empty as the Zil lanes.
That’s your supranational in action.
Can’t say I’m caught up myself in the ballyhoo over the Men’s 100M final, but for that one around half the seats in the stadium will be in the gift of the supranational and unaccountable IOC.
We the mug taxpayer will be paying for around 90% of them, and paying twice if you actually go there.
I saw on another blog a good comment on the empty seats, sorry cannot remember where, that “Today is a working day so all the corporate seats will be full”.
‘Underscoring that message, the marchers passed one of the apartment buildings that have had British army ground-to-air missiles deployed on its roof. That security measure, designed to stop a hijacked aircraft from being crashed into an Olympics venue, has drawn fierce local opposition’.
Any volunteers during this demo to man the missile batteries whilst the squaddies go for a tea break?
Mesdames et Messieurs! Attention! La Parade des nations Olympiques continue…..
Huw Edwards: ‘….and here come the athletes from the Peoples’ African Republic of Zugabee – they’ve been in the news because they’ve had a nasty outbreak of Ebola this year!’
Trevor Nelson: ‘Nice outfits, innit doh? Respect!’
Huw: ‘Isn’t it, boyo! Their flag there….a machete and a severed elephant’s head. I see here in my notes this former Belgian colony has a lot of support here in London. In fact there are now more little Zugabeans born in the five Olympic boroughs than there are in the whole of Zugabee. Good old NHS!’