Sun Tory Russia Story Fawked

At last week’s Press Awards, the good and great of the Press and Pundit Establishments came together to demonstrate to the real world that they were totally divorced from such trivial realities. This was achieved by such actions as awarding “highly commended” status to the odious flannelled fool Master Harry Cole, who claims to work for the Murdoch Sun, in the category titled News Reporter of the Year.

Would you give this clown a gong? No, me neither

Master Cole, who has been pretending for some years to be a journalist without ever convincing anyone except Himself Personally Now, would not be able to identify news reporting if it jumped up and kicked him in the undercarriage. But he does know how to selectively pitch a story in order to achieve maximum brownie points. This was demonstrated by an item in today’s edition of the Sun.

Under the headline “GALA GATECRASHER Notorious Russian official ‘attended exclusive summer party with top Tories’”, readers are told “Sergey Nalobin rubbed shoulders with the Cabinet at West London’s plush Hurlingham Club in 2014, it is claimed”. And, so what?

Paul Staines (left) with Master Cole (right) in December 2014, still working together after the event described in the Sun article. The other two prime specimens are Alex "Billy Liar" Wickham, and former sketch writer Simon Carr

“THE Conservatives invited a notorious Russian embassy official to their exclusive summer party with the PM just months before he was expelled from Britain in a spying row, it was claimed last night … Sergey Nalobin rubbed shoulders with the Cabinet and Ministers at West London’s plush Hurlingham Club in 2014, according to the Spectator magazine”. Cole has lifted the copy from his old pals at the Speccy.

There is more. “His diplomatic visa was revoked in 2015 and he was classed ‘persona non grata’ and forced to return to Moscow  sparking fury from the Russian Embassy in London … Despite public concerns about his activities being raised by MPs, it is alleged Mr Nabolin was able to attend the exclusive Tory bash - where rich donors are charged thousands for tickets to line party coffers”. And who is doing the alleging?

“The explosive revelation was made by political blogger Paul Staines editor of the Guido Fawkes blog”. Ah, the perpetually thirsty Paul Staines. And at that point, the deception being played on the Sun’s readership was complete. So let me put Cole straight.

One, Master Cole used to work for Staines, and at the time of the alleged encounter at the Hurlingham Club, was still doing so.

Two, Staines has discussed Nalobin before, notably on Twitter, as can be seen from the two examples shown (he is the subject under discussion).

Three, Nalobin has claimed he was not expelled,  and nor was he declared persona non grata by the UK authorities. He does, however, remember meeting Staines.

Four, Cole has failed to mention that only months after he visited Moscow at the end of 2011, the Fawkes blog started running adverts for the Russian embassy - and, naturally, taking their money for doing so. Cole worked for an enterprise taking Kremlin money.

And Five, not only Cole, but the Sun more generally, retains links with The Great Guido to this day. All that selectively omitted information, the whole thing cadged from another publication, and that is worth a “highly commended”? Yeah, right.