Don’t Reach For The Sky – 3

There were mutterings during the election campaign that Rupe’s troops over at Sky News (“first for breaking wind”) were becoming less than impartial in their politics, and favouring Young Dave – they were in a very small minority in calling the first Leaders’ Debate for Cameron, when most commentators agreed that Corporal Clegg had walked it.

And then there was Sky’s own Leaders’ Debate, moderated by Adam Boulton, an appallingly immodest man with much to be modest about. Boulton managed to put a question outside the subject of the debate to Clegg and then interrupted him in mid-answer, thus flagrantly breaching the debate rules agreed by all three parties.

But this was as nothing to the aftermath of the election, as Rupe and Junior found that all the cheerleading had failed to get their duly anointed nominee into 10 Downing Street. First the Super Soaraway Currant Bun, and then the supposedly quality Sunday Times, put out stories claiming that Pa Broon was “squatting” in Number Ten and suggesting he was there improperly – which, with no successor Government having been formed, he wasn’t.

And in what Sky management will no doubt say is pure coincidence, their “stars” have given the appearance that they are losing the plot – live on air. First to descend into hectoring incoherence was Kay Burley while interviewing David Babbs of electoral reform group 38 Degrees. Supporters of that group registered their displeasure by heckling Burley during a later interview.

But the icing on the cake came yesterday afternoon in the wake of the Brown resignation: this time it was Adam Boulton who went into meltdown during a less then good humoured exchange with Alastair Campbell. Boulton courted disaster with his instantly and persistently aggressive approach, and Big Al did the flannelled fool up like a kipper. We were not allowed to see the conclusion of the exchange, as Boulton went puce and lost it completely: the transmission cut away.

Is Sky News breaching the impartiality rules? Given the amount of discussion that these incidents have generated in Mainstream Media, blogosphere and on Twitter, it’s entirely possible that someone at Ofcom has noticed and is monitoring events.

[Boulton had another wobbly moment later with Labour MP Ben Bradshaw]