From the Sunday Times:
“The Tories have reined in plans to freeze the TV licence fee and force the BBC to reveal the salaries of its highest paid stars. After the party’s combative approach towards the corporation in the run-up to the election, Ed Vaizey, the new minister for media and arts, has used his first interview to tell the BBC that it will be treated firmly but fairly by the coalition government.”
Anyone else catch David Cameron interviewed by Andrew Marr this morning? Call Me Dave informed Marr that he was “a big fan” of the BBC, and the licence fee. Inspiring stuff.
Jeremy Hunt talks to Andrew Neil about what the Conservatives are planning for the BBC after the next election. It’ll be interesting to see how far, if at all, these moves will address the bias.
It doesn’t matter if they are Conservatives, Labour, Lib-Dems – whatever. The fact is that the sheer greed of the political caste at Westminster is truly monstrous. Playing within the rules that they set, and that they policed, the enthusiasm with which they have ripped US off knows few limits. But how do you think the BBC is covering the issue? With The Telegraph providing us with details of how Conservative MP’s have had their snouts in the trough of taxpayer funded largesse, do you detect a difference in BBC reporting?
When this news broke last week and it was Labour’s dirty little expense secrets that were revealed, the BBC narrative was all about how this damaged our confidence in politicians. Instantly the issue became outward looking and was presented in terms of lost public respect for politicians. But now it is Conservative expenses the spotlight is all about the Conservatives – firmly fixed inwards. The other aspect is there is a tone difference in how this is reported. Don’t you think there was a sense of dismay when the Labour skeletons fell out of the expenses closet, whereas this last few days there is an evident delight at being able to expose the folly of the Conservatives – with a dash of class war envy thrown in.
