The wrong target?

I’ve hesitated to write about this, because I actually quite like Evan Davis. It has attracted a fair amount of comment and criticism, though. And I don’t think it’s entirely unfair. Davis says he was just attacking the reporting, not defending Darling, but since the reports were attacking the Chancellor it amounts to the same thing. More to the point, as the Guardian mentions, the BBC has clamped down on … Continue reading

THE PAIN FOR PALIN.

Sarah Palin(Did I mention she has a pregnant unmarried 17 year old daughter?) has given a wonderful speech at the RNC and the BBC are most unhappy about it. I caught James Naughtie being interviewed about it at 6.35am this morning on Today and all he could observe was that by Palin (Did I mention she has a pregnant unmarried 17 year old daughter?) going for Obama – the Chosen … Continue reading

More Palin

Sorry to mine this again, but Frei’s contribution is possibly the best yet. As far as I can tell, his job is to make Webb look impartial. As Frei says, it’s impossible to know where to start – so how about with the kids (that’s worked for us so far): “Her five children? Unusual names: Track – apparently named because his mother is a keen runner – Willow, Bristol, Piper … Continue reading

Other people’s money

£29 million. That is a lot, isn’t it? You know you’re in trouble when even the Lib Dems are giving you a hard time. It’s also worth noting this bit: “…it does not include transport costs paid for by staff and claimed back through expenses”. Presumably that will include a lot of taxi fares. And all this is before the bill for the Olympics… Click through to read and contribute … Continue reading

FOR RUSSIA, WITH LOVE.

The EU’s gutless response to the Russian invasion of Georgia gets the sanitised treatment by the BBC here. Nothing new there. But if you check out Mark Mardell’s blog here you will discover that he reckons the EU has been astoundingly tough on Russia.“I reported on TV last night that the EU summit was “surprisingly tough” mainly because of the suspension of talks on a partnership with Russia, but also … Continue reading

No pregnant pause

If you suspected the BBC would never give the Republicans as much coverage as they gave the Democrats last week, shame on you. Since the Palin story broke, they been assiduous in keeping it on the front page, cooking up this feature on US teen pregnancies to do so. “There is,” we are told, “a debate state-side as to the reason for this high pregnancy rate.” I’ve no idea what … Continue reading

General BBC-related comment thread!

Please use this thread for comments about the BBC’s current programming and activities. This post will remain at or near the top of the blog – scroll down for new topic-specific posts. N.B. This is not an invitation for general off-topic comments, rants or chit-chat. Thoughtful comments are encouraged. Comments may also be moderated. Any suggestions for stories that you might like covered would be appreciated! It’s your space, use … Continue reading

What crisis?

The comments at Guido have picked up well on the bias in Paul Mason’s “analysis” of the economic crisis the UK faces, compounded in his blog here. It’s headlined “What the worst downturn in 60 years really looked like”, and you’ll not be surprised that he’s referring to the Thatcher recession in the early 80s. As one Guido fan notes, in his piece on Newsnight, he managed to analyse previous … Continue reading

GROWING THE STATE

. Have you caught the BBC’s coverage of Heathcliffe Brown’s alleged “rescue” package for the housing market? This reduces down to little more than an extension of council housing schemes that once so blighted this country along with Nanny State generously offering to take on shared ownership of your property. None of this goes anywhere near dealing with the central problem of a vastly over-priced property market but it does … Continue reading

SARAH MONTAGUE.

I was wondering which of the Today presenters is the most venomous in their left-wing bias and I suggest it is the not so fragrant Sarah Montague. Don’t know if you caught her this morning introducing a (brief) item on the Republican National Convention in Minneapolis by stating that the news that Sarah Palin’s “17 year old unmarried daughter was pregnant may dismay some people” James Naughtie to whom she … Continue reading