So it should have been no surprise when the tsunami of sneering dismissal struck: typical was the irredeemably batshit Allison Pearson, telling readers of the increasingly desperate and downmarket Telegraph that “Emily Maitlis is the Meghan Markle of journalism”. Think of a right wing media hate figure, invent otherwise spurious comparison, engage Phil Space mode. Result!
That Ms Maitlis had transgressed by making a better-late-than-never statement of the bleeding obvious was underscored by the perpetually thirsty Paul Staines and his rabble at the Guido Fawkes blog howling “Emily Ignored Labour Party Agents On BBC Board”, without considering whether any of those cited interfered in the way Robbie Gibb has been accused of doing.
The Fawkes flounce came after Staines’ new tame gofer, sorry, “senior reporter”, sensitive soul Christian Calgie, had sniped “I see Emily Maitlis is accusing the BBC of bending to the whim of No.10 over her Newsnight Cummings rant, despite the BBC themselves later finding it in breach of their own impartiality rules. We knew she was left-wing but she's going properly FBPE right now”. “Left-wing” and "FBPE" not evidenced, merely invented.
Also strong on both invention and denouncement of this newly-discovered anti-party element was the deeply unpleasant Dan Wootton, now shooting off his North and South at Gammon Broadcasting™ News (“Bacon’s News Channel”): “All Emily Maitlis has proven is that she was never fit to broadcast at an impartial BBC. Pushing an alternate reality where the Brexit-hating/Boris-despising/lockdown-loving Corporation is some sort of Tory party propaganda machine is risible. She’ll fit in at LBC’s echo chamber”.
“Brexit hating”? The Beeb is often too scared to even mention the word, thanks to its desire to appease the Tories. “Boris despising”? Alleged Prime Minister Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson has had the easiest of rides from the Corporation. As for “Lockdown loving”, that would be the same BBC that has been “Both Sides-ing” so much. Wootton is just an unprincipled liar.
Freedom of speech despises true democracy! Ignorance is strength! War is peace! But do go on. “Maitlis's deranged [abuse] sermon revealed her to be the embodiment of all that is worst about the smug, self-righteous BBC [she’s not at the BBC], a broadcaster which has abandoned any notion of objective reporting in favour of partisan tub-thumping [no citation]”. There was more.
“Worse, it confirmed how the elitist outlook she personifies poses a threat to both media freedom and democracy, the pillars of modern liberal Britain”. Paid propagandist for the real media elite says someone else is the elite. Gratuitous attack on someone in the media exercising their freedom of speech, who is shouted down as a threat to media freedom.
As to calling a speech to an audience mainly of her peers “a threat … to democracy”, that is complete bullshit. But Hume has given the game away: as it was with Nick Davies and the Guardian over phone hacking, so it must be for Emily Maitlis over Tory interference at the BBC. Those not keeping their heads down and obediently following the status quo must be denounced.
Why does the right-leaning media establishment need to do this? Ah well. Hume lets slip that one too: “BBC Two's Newsnight, which Maitlis fronted, and Radio 4's Today programme were in the front line of attempts to incite a coup against Boris ever since he won an overwhelming majority at the General Election”. Because they’re frightened to the point of paranoia, that’s why.
Meanwhile, a winter of fuel poverty awaits many. But not the right wing media.
https://www.patreon.com/Timfenton
I have never had much time for Maitlis, nor do I know the reason for this sudden and unusual burst of candour.
ReplyDeleteBut it has at least had an acceptable result in turning over the media rock to reveal the creatures clinging to the underside.
Not that it will make any long term difference to the assorted monopoly-owned Julius Streichers in this list.
However, there is comedy value in watching the six-legged Streicher-creatures again scurry for the cover of slime under the nearest rock.
Were I in Ms Maitlis' spiky-heeled and rather impractical shoes, I should take being slagged off by Allison Pearson — the Napoleon XIV* of journalism — as a compliment.
ReplyDelete* Sadly, no-one is coming to take her away. The Council won’t take hazardous waste, the Army claimed to be washing their tanks and various private contractors promised to phone us back with a quote and then didn’t.
Of all the people refenced on this topic, Napoleon XIV was way down my list. Hats off !
DeletePull the other one, Emily Maitlis. We remember your role in the vilification of Jeremy Corbyn. He did not always help himself, but even so. Liberals, self-styled "centrists", do this all the time. They dish it out by the bucket load, but they cannot take a thimbleful of it back. They hack the legs off everyone else, but they only have to have their arms brushed and they go squealing to themselves as somehow the referee as well as a player.
ReplyDeleteMaitlis is hardly the first well-remunerated, former high-profiler to suddenly seemingly develop a pseudo-conscience after years of gravy train employment. Don't remember her standing up for journalistic integrity within BBC during the Corbyn leadership.
ReplyDeleteFar too little far too late! Thanks but no thanks.
I knew a few of the BBC team at Oxford, and very good they were too at disseminating Corbyn and his ill gotten leadership gains.
ReplyDeleteBut, around Brexit, they were lacking.
10:09.
DeleteWhat "ill gotten leadership gains" did Jeremy Corbyn make?
In your own far right tory time........
I've made my point very clearly, and continue to do so in my published work and stage plays.
Delete18:00.
DeleteFor those of us disinterested in your "work"...... explain yourself clearly on this blog.
Go on.
I've already written about this. Just Google me.
Delete12:27.
DeleteDisinterested in "Googling" you.
You posted on this Blog. So explain yourself here.
Go on.
There's no longer any point to watching any TV 'news' or listening to any radio 'news' or reading any 'news'papers. Virtually all of them are full of propaganda drivel written, edited and presented by maybe a few hundred right wing poltroons. Full control of output is easy because the same faces show up at any and every station, all of them peddling the same poisoned tripe - sometimes even in the same words and running order. No wonder they're despised.
ReplyDeleteBut if this gang are bad, wait until you see the new lot vomited out of 'schools' for the media jugend. The new gang won't get employed if they don't pass the screening process. They have to possess an exalted cringe factor to 'get on'.
There are plenty of good internet alternatives for those who want to find the truth. That valuable commodity will never be found in corporate media and its weasel employees.
You are uninterested in googling me, not "disinterested", which refers to a political element of non bias.
ReplyDeleteMy recent play went in to this in great detail, I suggest you seek that out.
15:23.
DeleteNah. You exhibit all the signs of a far right tory troll floating click bait.
Not worth a carrot. Not to be taken seriously.