Jake Wallis Simons, a suitable candidate for resignation ...
There was more. “The article's claims appeared to be similar to talking points used by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to justify the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) presence in the Philadelphi Corridor. The story was followed up by media in Israel, and later shared by Netanyahu's son. According to the Times of Israel, the IDF subsequently said it had no knowledge of such a document existing”. And then it got worse.
Long-serving columnists decided they had had enough. “Jonathan Freedland, Hadley Freeman and David Aaronovitch announced they were quitting their columns over what Freedland described as a ‘great disgrace’ at the London-based newspaper. It comes after the JC said it conducted a ‘thorough investigation’ into one of its freelance journalists, Elon Perry, ‘after allegations were made about aspects of his record’”. Press misbehaviour redux.
At which point it has to be pointed out that, for the JC, this is not a first offence. As Hamza Yusuf reminded us, “The Jewish Chronicle was found to have breached the IPSO Editors’ Code of Practise 33 times in 3 years”. IPSO was asked to open a standards investigation into the JC. They declined.
As Alan Rusbridger noted, “Lord Faulks said this was partly because the paper had new owners … Not that he or anyone else knew who they were”. He also pointed out “Robbie Gibb’s BBC declaration of interest form registers that he is still 100 per cent owner of the [JC] though he claims to have resigned this summer”. Gibb is still a member of the BBC board.
Freedland, Aaronovitch, and Ms Freeman, though, remained with the JC when the title libelled Marc Wadsworth, claiming “that he was involved in an initiative to track down Jewish Labour activists at their private addresses in order to intimidate, threaten or harass them into silence”. Wadsworth instructed Carter Ruck. So it was expensive. And the JC lost.
... and Robbie Gibb, likewise
The JC’s Islamophobia has also been blatantly obvious, a recent example being “Imagine Corbyn with around 12 million Muslim votes to play with - that’s Mélenchon”. And then we come to Wallis Simons’ time at the Mail, where he was Associate Global Editor. There, he libelled Lord Sheikh.
Headlined “Top Tory peer’s appearance at Corbyn’s ‘hate conference’ in Tunisia comes after years of rubbing shoulders with Islamists, hate preachers and Holocaust deniers”, the article ended up with Associated Newspapers having to make an apology in open court. And Wallis Simons is still at it.
Last year, he Tweeted “Palestinian Muslims launch Ramadan attack on Church of the Annunciation in Beit Jala near Bethlehem”. The story was not true: he deleted the Tweet soon afterwards. There should be no questioning the assertion that Wallis Simons must resign. Or that Robbie Gibb should do likewise from the BBC board. Meanwhile, it should be borne in mind that Wallis Simons was the Mail’s main man for kicking Jeremy Corbyn.
So how much of that copy was partially, or wholly, untrue and/or defamatory? The JC was also in the vanguard of smearing Corbyn, kicking off its campaign in no style at all by proclaiming the then Labour leader to be “Anti-Semitic and a racist”. Jezza was neither of those things, but the mud stuck, not least because, as we now know, a significant part of his own party was briefing against him in an effort, ultimately, to throw the 2019 election.
Maybe the Jewish Chronicle was for a time, but not for all time. One thing is for certain: its best chance of survival is without Jake Wallis Simons.
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11 comments:
Watch as absolutely no-one faints in shock over the JC, 'just making shit up'. Like the rest of the gutter press their motto is, 'truth sells, but lies sell, much, much more'.
Added to that, what a shock that IPSO was prepared to do sweet fuck all about the papers numerous porkies. I mean they and Ofcom are usually so proactive in dealing with proven lies...
As with the Observer article at the weekend, which our blogger wrote about in his preceding post, we need to ask if any of this would be gaining traction if a left leaning politician was leading the Labour party? The answer is, of course, no. A few obscure publications might mention it, and Al Jazeera, but if the rest were not able to shout them down, they would simply be ignored (see AJ’s Labour Files as a good example of the latter).
But now that maximum profit extraction from public services is secure for the next 5 years, we can all now notice how an opaquely funded propaganda outfit for a foreign power which has routinely libelled and lied for at least the last 3 years is in fact an opaquely funded propaganda outfit for a foreign power.
While it’s fun to watch scum like Simmons squirm, and swine like Freedland, Freeman et al try desperately to distance themselves from the fallout, the damage has been done.
And I see now that the JC is going for “charitable status” which means individuals can donate “anonymously” to the paper. Let’s see how that pans out…
'Jake Wallis Simons, a suitable candidate for resignation'
'Resignation' is not the word thinking of...
"Maybe the Jewish Chronicle was for a time, but not for all time. One thing is for certain: its best chance of survival is without Jake Wallis Simons."
If that's the case then let him stay there and go under with the bogroll.
The sooner that rag is bankrupt the better for world peace.
we can conclude that antisemitism is a tactic that's past its sell by date and can now be discarded.
The Zionist Times coming out with obsessive nonsense? Who would have known.
But Gibb would never influence "news" output. You know, like director Neil never influences output of far right propaganda vomit from urfascist the Spectator.
Of course not.
That's not going to happen. It's AS to be against genocide and a backwards rightwing faction who like to exploit a tragic 20th century event, to excuse their hunan rights abuses and war crimes.
I wonder what the JChronicle far right nutjobs have to say about the latest Israeli state murder of two innocent children via exploding pagers.
The Jewish Chronicle is guilty of many poisonous lies.
The worst result is it renders meaningless the term "antisemitism". That's what happens when it is levelled against everyone who condemns the mass murdering actions of the Israeli state.
Oh tragic irony.
The Starmer Zionist-without-qualification response to the issue is........ cowardly silence. Which makes him and his apologists complicit.
This is likely the beginning of the end of far right "Labour". And good riddance.
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