Andrew Zalotocky writes: What did you think of “The Christmas Invasion”? It didn’t seem overtly political, which makes me wonder why the BBC web site had that story promoting it as such beforehand. I can think of three plausible explanations: 1) The “peace message” story was a heavy-handed attempt to ensure that the audience got the right message 2) It was the loose cannons at BBC Online giving it their … Continue reading
Not many posts while I was away, I see. I suspect that, with the honourable exception of Laban, the Biased BBC shock-jocks were unable to post due to a prior commitment to getting some serious hung-over layabouting done. Never mind, other bloggers took up the slack: Read Adloyada on one award the BBC won’t be boasting about – namely an ironic award from Honest Reporting.com. Readers provided a full laundry … Continue reading
reports on the trial of Saddam Hussein, declaring ‘Saddams’s trial is not a farce’. Pootergeek is concerned for him. I think I have just read John Simpson’s final serious news report. It is in many ways a frightening document; I am afraid on his behalf. Apart from the factual content that we have come to expect from the BBC even at its most feeble, it breaks metropolitan media convention in … Continue reading
with this sympathetic story of Christians in Iran. Commerce and security matters are newsworthy, but what about those who suffer? Why the silence? Click through to read and contribute comments on this post.
“John”notes It’s My Story, 9 minutes in*: “It’s My Story : The Vietnamese Buddha Documentary about a Buddhist master returning to Vietnam for the first time since the war. Discussing the Buddhist monks who immolated themselves in protest at the Vietnam war the presenter drops in this staggering bit of amoral relativism: ‘I kind of think about what happened at 9/11 and I suppose I’m trying to figure out how … Continue reading
posts about her experience of blogging for the Beeb. Click through to read and contribute comments on this post.
Ho hum, Kofi Annan wins an environmental prize: ‘UN secretary-general Kofi Annan has been given one of the most prestigious environmental awards, the Zayed Prize. The citation noted his “personal leadership” on sustainable development… The winners of the prize, which honours former UAE President Sheikh Zayed, share $1m (£564,000); previous awards have gone to Jimmy Carter and the BBC.’ The last paragraph was slightly rodent-fragrant – and the name rang … Continue reading
Via Bloggers4Labour, more HYS goodness: “If the court follows international law, then he will have to be returned to power. If it doesn’t follow the law, the UN should refuse to accept the new government. It will be tough on Iraqis, but the principle of non-aggression must be upheld at all costs, and Bush must be humiliated and driven from power.Colin Danforth, Montreal” One presumes that this is irony (“It … Continue reading
Bloggers4Labour discuss that slave picture. “Roy” links to criticism in The Guardian – is this a Menshevik vs Bolshevik spat or does The Guardian realise that it is in fact a free market operator harmed by the Beeb’s gross taxpayer subsidisation? “Try almost anything innovative, indeed – and Auntie, lifting her skirts, is off and running in a flash.” On the subject of editorialising agency copy, “Roy” asks us to … Continue reading
Via “Roy”, The Times on old media and the internet: “This is not just a problem for weblogs. The internet is teeming with “news”. Visitors to the BBC website, for instance, can read stories about New York, Indonesia and Shropshire. One could be forgiven for believing that it was dispatched by BBC correspondents on the streets of Manhattan, Jakarta and Shrewsbury. It appears under Auntie’s banner, after all. But this … Continue reading
