Guido Fawked – Not In The Same League

[Update at end of post]

Blatant hypocrisy is not unknown at the Guido Fawkes blog, where the perpetually thirsty Paul Staines and his tame gofer, the flannelled fool Henry Cole, love to kick others for the kind of behaviour in which they are both more than ready to indulge. But to do it so obviously, by calling a national newspaper for what they themselves did earlier the same day, really is having a laugh.

Nah, the pisshead is the bloke behind me. I think

Yesterday afternoon, the Laurel and Hardy of the blogosphere decided to tweak the Maily Telegraph for “frantic changes” to a piece on their website about a lunch attended by Young Dave, hosted by the Conservative Friends of Pakistan. The Tel had apparently changed the photo they used from a view of the proceedings to one of Cameron and Sayeeda Warsi.

Afternoon accusation of others ...

And, so what? Indeed. But someone at the Fawkes blog claims to have spotted Peter Oborne among the guests. Again, though, so what? Well, the less than dynamic duo want their audience to believe the change of image is some kind of internal conspiracy, so Oborne becomes “the Telegraph’s very own Peter Oborne” in the retelling.

This is weapons grade bullshit: Peter Oborne is not merely fiercely independent of party affiliation, but also independent of any one paper. He is published not just in the Tel, but also in the Mail and even – whisper it quietly – the deeply subversive Guardian. He has fronted many investigative documentaries, principally for Channel 4. He has had several books published.

But I must be a proper journalist, cos I'm on telly!

But Oborne does not stick to anyone else’s script, and for this reason he is universally respected, even by those – such as the blessed Tone – with whom he has taken issue in the past. He has also passed severely adverse comment on the pro-Israel lobby in the UK, while elsewhere highlighting Islamophobia in media and politics. Both these would not endear him to the Fawkes blog.

Most of all, Oborne is a proper journalist. Neither Staines nor Cole reaches higher than his ankles. And the accusation of “frantic changes” misses their own very obvious rush job earlier in the day in a post on the same subject – their continuing attack on Sayeeda Warsi. Not content with recycling the story from the Telegraph, the Fawkes blog embellished it with an accusation they then had to withdraw.

... after doing it themselves in the morning

So much for others indulging in “frantic changes”, then. This comes hard on the heels of Cole demonstrating his gift for grammatical ineptitude again by not being able to differentiate “refuge” from “umbrage” when once again trying to spin the alleged Pa Broon “war” call to Rupe. Coupled to the propensity to routine hypocrisy, this makes the Fawkes blog a source of comedy gold.

But not for the reasons its authors had intended. Another fine mess, once again.

[UPDATE 27 June 1915 hours: the attempt by the Fawkes blog to exploit the momentary controversy surrounding Sayeeda Warsi and Abid Hussein, a second cousin who accompanied her on a trip to Pakistan (named in the screen shot above) fizzled out today as Young Dave's ministerial code advisor cleared her of any serious breach of that code.

So have the Laurel and Hardy of the blogosphere acknowledged that they called yet another one wrong? Have they heck. The Fawkes blog has, as is usual when Staines and Cole foul up, just ignored the ruling and set about laying into someone else instead. Another fine mess]