tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1725411122663433189.post1939855539899558622..comments2024-01-04T19:27:02.335-08:00Comments on Zenpolitics: Corbyn moment - never a better time to expose the GuardianJohn Hilleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10072819649049077782noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1725411122663433189.post-13244851289113914662015-08-13T11:22:41.108-07:002015-08-13T11:22:41.108-07:00Time to boycott The Guardian?
I wonder, is it not...Time to boycott The Guardian?<br /><br />I wonder, is it not time to act on this? It is very clear that Corbyngate has revealed The Guardian's true colours to most of its readership in a way that has not happened before. With virtually no exceptions the comments on the Corbyn stories are very angry ones. I include myself in amongst the readers who, until the last few months, probably complained about it all the time but probably thought it was, for all its obvious flaws, not exactly beyond the pale. Whereas now it is. <br /><br />Its not even that the coverage hasn't supported Corbyn, but the distortion - the utter, wanton, systematic irrationality of the whole thing. No attempt to engage in a rational discourse whatsoever. It is seriously not an exaggeration to say that it has quite frequently sank to the level of tabloid journalism of the worst kind.<br /><br />Chris Elliot's piece basically apologised for 'not taking Corbyn seriously in the early days of the campaign' (rough quote from memory) and promised that they would be better in future: but the fact is that it has gotten worse and worse, not better: the ridiculous Bloodworth piece about Corbyn having spoken to unpleasant people on a number of occasions (or their having claimed to be mates with him) in today's edition is really a bridge too far in terms irrationality, deception, misinformation, the exploitation of tacit associations of a really base kind. And it employs the favourite ideological tool - like Jonathon Jones' piece, another embarrassment for a paper that endorses the country's democratic socialist party - of being very clear that we're not suggesting for a moment that Corbyn 'has an anti-Semitic bone in his body' - before then devoting the whole piece to tacitly implying the very claim you start by renouncing (in Jones' case it was that we're not saying for a moment that Corbyn is 'Lenin or Stalin', then spending the rest of the time implying by connotation that he is just that.) <br /><br />Something has to be done doesn't it? Isn't it time to boycott The Guardian? Couldn't the Corbyn campaign be a dynamo for an expression of outrage at the Guardian's obvious betrayal not of left-leaning commitments (they've never been a strongly leftist paper anyway) but of the basic commitments of a serious publication with a responsibility to nurture a rational and reasoned, informed public debate? Couldn't the social media network that already exists be used to coordinate a mass boycott of the Guardian with the aim of forcing it to admit unreservedly its coverage has been biased, that it has vested interests (including that it allegedly continues benefits from offshore tax haven arrangements that Corbyn is vowing to shut down), and maybe even the editor resigns? Shouldn't there be a real backlash here, and would it be all that difficult to organised? <br /><br />Presumably it would be very easy to do - all you'd have to do is get everyone to turn on adblockplus on the Guardian site, and I assume their advertising revenue would take a massive hit that would be unsustainable for very long? (I may have misunderstood how these things work though). <br /><br />Its not going to bring down the paper - but it might force them to repent on pain of going out of financial ruin (assuming they are that reliant on advertising revenue)?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1725411122663433189.post-28529964144460944592015-08-12T16:30:48.215-07:002015-08-12T16:30:48.215-07:00Yes, we're really right-wing wreckers. Or frus...Yes, we're really right-wing wreckers. Or frustrated lashers. Or maybe we just see something more obvious like the establishment-serving Guardian doing everything in its power to stop Corbyn, and people like Jones, Milne and Monbiot saying not a word about it.<br /><br />Tonight the Guardian disgraced itself further by giving prime space (again) to mass warmonger Tony Blair, who warned that a Corbyn win would mean "annihilation" for Labour. <br /><br />http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/aug/12/even-if-hate-me-dont-take-labour-over-cliff-edge-tony-blair <br /><br />The Guardian and the Blairites, acting as one. But don't expect the Guardian's 'finest' to utter a critical word, "don't expect them to spike their own situations".<br /><br />As tweeted today:<br /><br />John Hilley @johnwhilley <br />Media carpet-bombing of #Corbyn, from Sun/Mail to Guardian/Indy, stark proof it's ALL pro-establishment. Need for REAL independent media.<br /><br />https://twitter.com/johnwhilley/status/631394794883936256<br /><br /><br /> John Hilleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10072819649049077782noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1725411122663433189.post-6738007629093167982015-08-12T06:29:38.409-07:002015-08-12T06:29:38.409-07:00So either John Whilley and media lens are lashing ...So either John Whilley and media lens are lashing out at everyone in frustration at 'the media', or they're actually right-wing wreckers trying to demolish the only opportunity the left has to reach an audience. We need Milne, Jones and Monbiot in there, but don't expect them to spike their own situations. They are after all achieving far more than you constant whingers.'Don't turn your back'https://www.blogger.com/profile/04661019081345875334noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1725411122663433189.post-12855247678596743062015-08-08T16:40:24.403-07:002015-08-08T16:40:24.403-07:00and the truth shall set you free - nice one John, ...and the truth shall set you free - nice one John, keep it up!<br /><br />Cheers FredAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1725411122663433189.post-51290903878292728992015-08-08T01:17:24.772-07:002015-08-08T01:17:24.772-07:00@eatbluesmarties is right. When it comes to war an...@eatbluesmarties is right. When it comes to war and key inflection points for promoting war, the Guardian is always onside with the war party, regardless of editor. They print a few figleaves, deep inside or after the event, but they always beat the drums on the front and editorial pages. And it's the war party and associates that fear the effect of Corbyn on political debate.Stephenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09822697399126853771noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1725411122663433189.post-72961341933934404012015-08-07T09:55:59.895-07:002015-08-07T09:55:59.895-07:00Good stuff, John.
~<a href="https://twitter.com/medialens/status/629669369279291392" rel="nofollow">Good stuff</a>, John.<br />~ifthethunderdontgetya™³²®©https://www.blogger.com/profile/06252371815131259831noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1725411122663433189.post-38595699132979543222015-08-07T09:55:20.072-07:002015-08-07T09:55:20.072-07:00I cannot believe how naive this article is. The Gu...I cannot believe how naive this article is. The Guardian was ever thus - a centrist liberal minded newspaper with leftwing/socialist tendencies only when it suits the editor of the day. Since Peter Preston left its drifted even more toward the centre.<br />You only have to look at the initial support of the invasion of Iraq to understand its patent establishment bias.eatbluesmartieshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16819034692026519569noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1725411122663433189.post-24079843748256037702015-08-07T08:52:52.091-07:002015-08-07T08:52:52.091-07:00The link to Fantasy Politics - 'Corbyn's M...The link to Fantasy Politics - 'Corbyn's Morons' And The 'Sensible Approach' is broken.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1725411122663433189.post-63909478301365353542015-08-07T06:37:28.104-07:002015-08-07T06:37:28.104-07:00John, great piece. My 93 yr old dad, who reads the...John, great piece. My 93 yr old dad, who reads the Guardian every day, has been telling me much the same for months. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com