“Is torture ever justified”? I will be on BBC1 “The Big Question” on Sunday morning to discuss this issue and invite YOU to offer your suggestions here! I think the question itself is framed in a biased manner but broadly speaking I believe in whatever is necessary to save innocents from terrorism.  

    In spite of a scientific consensus, many continue to resist or ignore the message of climate communicators – but why? What are the social and emotional explanations for this reaction? Remember when the good comrades of the Soviet Union used to deal with their inconvenient political opponents or troublesome intellectuals by denouncing them as insane and locking them up safely out of the way in deepest Siberia? The … Continue reading →

So Fawlty Towers gets censored but the BBC puts up £5,000 to promote transgender comedy (ht DJ): The Trans Comedy Award opens up an opportunity for the transgender community and members of the general public to portray transgender characters and the transgender experience in an affirming manner. We are looking for original comedy sitcoms, comedy dramas or sketch shows featuring transgender characters and/or themes and written for television. An award … Continue reading →

From Our Own Correspondent did a quick report by Matthew Taylor on the Bedouin living in Kuwait…revealing the plight they find themselves in labelled illegal foreigners and therefore ‘stateless’ by Kuwait with no citizenship or rights…unable to get jobs, birth certificates or own property or run businesses. Kuwait claims they are in the country to claim the material benefits on offer to its citizens….free education, free healthcare, no taxes, subsidised … Continue reading →

    The BBC finally got around to reporting the ‘Muslim Patrol’…or the ‘Homophobic vigilantes’ as the BBC prefer…..a key identifier of the ‘Vigilantes’, both personally and to explain the reason for their actions is that they are Muslim…..and therefore an acknowedgement of that should have been in the report’s title. The BBC had to admit that the vigilantes claimed to be acting in the name of Islam but as … Continue reading →

Here you are, on time and in good order, a new Open Thread to detail the bias!

Well, Cameron has made his big speech on the UK’s future relationship with the EU. I have provided my one line summary here. Wonder what you make of the BBC coverage of it? I thought Today was loaded with those who either oppose the IDEA of any change with the EU (Mandelson) or those who are raining praise on Cameron’s alleged “toughness (Bernard Jenkins) Not that much space for those who … Continue reading →

Did you see that the BBC has taken to censoring Fawlty Towers?

Yes, of course we all know that the BBC is unrelentingly hostile to anyone even vaguely right of liberal in the normal run of things BUT when the likes of William Hague and those wise old (Arabist) coves at the F.O. churn out press releases supportive of the urgent need for a Palestinian State, then all of a sudden, the BBC is almost kind to them! Almost like the BBC has an … Continue reading →

Wonder what you make of this? The Prime Minister said the attack that killed six Britons should be “condemned utterly” after a Conservative MP expressed “surprise and disappointment” at the broadcaster’s reporting. The BBC, which has strict guidelines for reporters on the terms they should adopt, described the attackers as “militants” 12 times in one report on its website. However, in the same report, the only use of the term “terrorists” occurred … Continue reading →