Bullying The Beeb – 3

Most people take the impartiality of broadcasters as read: there are the usual wingnut crowd, principally out there on the right, who believe that the BBC, and maybe Channel 4, are part of some gigantic Marxist conspiracy, but in the grand scheme of things they are numerically small. So when the Beeb’s DG has to make a pronouncement of fairness, it is significant.

Mark Thompson has taken time out to emphasise that the BBC will “show neither fear nor favour” in the General Election campaign. Why should he need to emphasise what most folks take for granted? Ah well. The wingnuts who equate the Beeb with Soviet-era propaganda may be daft, but some of them are in the Tory Party, as the recent bullying behaviour of Michael Gove demonstrates.

Thompson should not have to have made his statement, and Young Dave could easily tell his chaps to desist from their more extreme behaviour. That Cameron shows no sign of doing so suggests that the Tories see an advantage in the plainly vindictive stance of “just you wait until we get elected”.

And it’ll play well with Dave’s new friend Rupe – someone who does not have the vote, and who should not be influencing the poll.