Comments on: Every season is silly season

By: Bill Quango MP

Bill Quango MP — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 17:15:11 +0000

Very good point BE. I might have noticed interest rates falling through the floor though. I doubt I would have noticed the VAT cut, or the scrappage scheme. As for green energy.. wouldn’t have had a clue.
I might try this turn off the\ news for a bit.

By: Blue Eyes

Blue Eyes — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 10:44:30 +0000

Ted, what is frustrating is that the Beeb *could* and *should* be doing the factual stuff and not the glamorous dramanews thing but it doesn’t and so the whole point is undermined. I would love the BBC to become an unashamedly elitist high-brow organisation with perhaps one TV channel and a couple of radio stations. Unfortunately the reverse has happened and it is chasing ITV to the bottom.

By: ted

ted — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 10:40:28 +0000

Dead on Blue Eyes, it’s an uncomfortable fact that news is starting to resemble entertainment, and as a result, plain factual news is a thing of the past.

It needs to shock us/interest us/draw us in. Sky/ITV/most others in the international arena are corporate, and therefore run for profit, not for the common interest. So the need to attract viewers in order to charge for advertising which is how they make profit, so they will move to the lowest common denominator-sensationalism and overly visual stories that shock but do not tend to give a clear picture. Did anyone see the Charlie Brooker show called Newswipe recently? Takes apart the modern news show brilliantly, and charts the rise of opinion over fact, and conflict/striking visuals over news. Oh yeah, and the fact that 80% of ‘news’ is actually PR and most reporters are too lazy to go after a story-scary stuff.

I also get annoyed about editorial slant that promotes one opinion over another. Great e.g. in the Times today: “Watchdog accused of rushing out organics report.” That isn’t factual as it exaggerates one opinion over another-if it was plain news it would be “Watchdog releases organics report.” Then a synopsis of what it said, then equal space given to those who disagree. But reporting it like that totally changes the tone and leads the reader to a specific conclusion. Grrrr, maybe I should stop reading the papers too….

By: Andrew Duffin

Andrew Duffin — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 10:12:38 +0000

Well I don’t know about the recession, but you try getting a table in a decent restaurant in Glasgow. Even on a Wednesday.

I suppose they are all public-sector employees.

By: Mark Brentano

Mark Brentano — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 09:37:17 +0000

Blue Eyes, have you not heard the news? We are at war with the French, man. Meet in the town square, and bring your rifle!

By: Letters From A Tory

Letters From A Tory — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 08:52:56 +0000

Ignorance might sound like bliss, but I don’t want to miss a chance to get even angrier at Labour – it spurs me on when it comes to blogging and local campaigning!

By: Stu

Stu — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 08:15:32 +0000

This is kind of what I was trying to say with the ‘No News is Good News’ thing a few months back. If you ignore the world, and the news, and just concentrate only on the stuff that affects your day-to-day life, the world is suddenly a nicer, more enjoyable, more friendly place.

Politics is (has always been) just the stuff that gets in the way of that and interferes. The trick, I think, is to not let it bother you.