, entitled The School Siege – Survivors’ Stories, was a film about the tragic events at Beslan in the week before last, with contributions from survivors and participants. I recorded the programme to observe the BBC’s language – particularly their apparent trouble in recognising that those who murder and terrorise unarmed civilians in the name of politics/religion/ideology are terrorists rather than merely militants. The following are chronological excerpts: 00’00” Presenter: … Continue reading →

– a BBC continuity announcer (in the London area) this evening, announced that tonight’s Panorama will be about the Beslan atrocity, and that it will, get this, “look at what the terrorists did and why they did it”. I hope that this terminological rectitude reflects a change of BBC policy rather than an inadvertant blip, although I expect that even once the broadcast wing of the BBC finally ‘gets it’ … Continue reading →

? Kevin Myers has written a sterling article on the BBC’s coverage of Northern Ireland. Some might say that the BBC’s coverage of terrorism in that country is the prototype for their muddled and misguided coverage of terrorism worldwide. Myers has some harsh logic for those who see BBC bias as insignificant, who preach that it’s not worth getting uppity over Aunty and her wee antics: ‘We really shouldn’t be … Continue reading →

Why was our national broadcaster so keen to get taken in by a likely fraud (likely to be exposed as such despite the protestations of a Rather biased fellow)? When and how will they begin to retract their unambiguous presentation of the story as hard news? Why did they imply at the beginning of their smearticle that the documents came from the Whitehouse (‘The documents released by the White House … Continue reading →

This is what the BBC says Cheney said about Kerry the other day. US Vice-President Dick Cheney has said a vote for Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry could make a terror attack on the US more likely. Julian Sanchez, though not fond of Cheney, corrects the record for the sloppy (or deliberately misleading) Beeb. First, the full quote by Cheney: Because if we make the wrong choice, then the danger … Continue reading →

Further to Andrew Bowman’s post below, take a look at this: UK on Terror Alert. I think the starkness of the atrocity at Beslan may have prompted a change of policy. If so, better late than never. But was there ever a policy of avoiding the world terrorist? Readers here may not be in much doubt. We’ve been tracking this very issue for months, and when we do find a … Continue reading →

– over the last few days David Chater of Sky News has been using the word ‘terrorist’ to describe the terrorists involved in the Beslan massacre. This evening another Sky News journalist, Juliet Errington, also used the word terrorist in a Beslan report. It’s good to see Sky News moving away from the dishonesty, deception and moral equivalence of describing anyone with quasi-political grievances, guns and bombs as ‘militants’. I … Continue reading →

: Melanie shoots another fish in the barrel– again this incident I saw, being a Newsnight item where the appearance of John Redwood brought out the spiteful worst in the Newsnight team, as they repeatedly mocked him for not knowing the Welsh national anthem when Welsh secretary years ago. An oldie but a goodie for the Conservative-haters at the Beeb. Melanie Phillips is back on her beat– and angry at … Continue reading →

It took me ages to get that last post out, if I have at all. (It’s not showing up when I look at the blog, but that’s not conclusive.) There is little point in emailing me at the moment. My apologies. Click through to read and contribute comments on this post.

, children, is that no actual murders of children took place. Some of them may have been caught in the crossfire and some of them may have just died in unspecified ways, but, so far as I can see, Children’s BBC coverage of the massacre does not treat it as a massacre at all. Russia holds first seige funerals. Russian troops “end school seige”. Timeline of Russian school seige I … Continue reading →