Freedom of the press as long as you don't ask the government difficult questions

[Borchester]

The problem is not that OfCom is being run by enraged of Tunbrige Wells or that the BBC broadcasts the news that Islington see fit to print, but that no journalists have been sent jail for upsetting anyone. The abiding characteristic of the UK media is its terminal cowardice.

[papasmurf]

Could considering appointing Paul Dacre to Ofcom and Charles Moore to chair the BBC be Johnson's attempt at the mini equivalent of Trump's setting the Supreme Court in ultra conservative concrete...?

That seems to be  fair assessment to me.

[patman post]

I wonder how freedom of the press will be affected if Paul Dacre becomes the head of OfCom!

Could considering appointing Paul Dacre to Ofcom and Charles Moore to chair the BBC be Johnson's attempt at the mini equivalent of Trump's setting the Supreme Court in ultra conservative concrete...?

[papasmurf]

I wonder how freedom of the press will be affected if Paul Dacre becomes the head of OfCom!

Dacre is the worst possible choice for the job. I would not put him in charge of anything based on his track record.

[Barry]

I wonder how freedom of the press will be affected if Paul Dacre becomes the head of OfCom!

[Thomas]

Going back to the topic "Re: Freedom of the press as long as you don't ask the government difficult questions"

Hasn't that always been the case? I'm certainly not a supporter of the current government or the Tories in general but avoiding difficult questions has been employed by Tory and Labour governments over the years.

For once i completely agree.

We all remember tony blair and his party getting into bed with murdoch to avoid the "difficult" questions of the "free press".


I agree with what tony benn said....

Tony Blair's remarkable career – 10 years at No 10. Like any memoir, it highlights the story and illustrates it with comments about some of the people with whom he worked. But what is really significant about his political life was that he set up a new political party, New Labour. This transformed the Labour party from being a radical alternative to the Conservatives into a quasi-Thatcherite sect that made three electoral victories possible, with the backing of Rupert Murdoch and other proprietors

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2010/sep/05/tony-blair-journey-tony-benn

We had former labour spin doctor alistair campbell tell us in his memoirs of the cosy relationship tony blair and the labour party hierarchy had with rupert murdoch when labour were in power.

So aye quackers you are certainly correct about how red and blue tories when in power like to cosy up to and manipulate the press when it suits , so as you say its nothing new.

Its generally why when labour supporters start bleating about the nasty right wing  tory press i generally have fits of laughter.

Starmer  , if he ever gets into power will be no different to johnson or tony blair  in this regard.

[Nalaar]

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[HDQQ]

Going back to the topic "Re: Freedom of the press as long as you don't ask the government difficult questions"

Hasn't that always been the case? I'm certainly not a supporter of the current government or the Tories in general but avoiding difficult questions has been employed by Tory and Labour governments over the years.

[cromwell]

Well at the risk of being serious not all that smurfy posts is untrue, there have been many cases of people who really are unable to survive without the benefits system.

For every person that takes the piss out of the system (and some do) I can give you as many examples of where people have been let down.

OK everyone take the piss out of smurfy,laugh at his expense (and yes I've done it) but I just wish as much effort in pointing out the massive tv's sky and the easy lifestyle of those on benefits ( not as many as is claimed) were also directed at the rich and powerful who take the piss more so by not paying their fair dues in to the system and robbing you and me ordinary people.

2.4% of all DWP stuff is lost due to 'fraud', 3% if you add their "unreported" calcs, but 1.1% is also kept due to underpaying etc.

All in all it is a drop in the ocean as you say. Then we have rich landlord MP's and others ripping off tenants on state benefits for the maximum amount, while offering them rough accommodation..

yet you happily import millions more call them migrants and expect them to be housed and kept in benefits. While trying moral blackmail and psychology which is exactly what Smurf plays on and when he is told he can help out, suddenly he is only self isolates because of himself and nobody else actually counts.

No I don't,this country has a long history of sheltering true refugees who should be returned to their country of origin once safe.
As for economist refugees definitely not they should be refused entry.

[Sheepy]

Well at the risk of being serious not all that smurfy posts is untrue, there have been many cases of people who really are unable to survive without the benefits system.

For every person that takes the piss out of the system (and some do) I can give you as many examples of where people have been let down.

OK everyone take the piss out of smurfy,laugh at his expense (and yes I've done it) but I just wish as much effort in pointing out the massive tv's sky and the easy lifestyle of those on benefits ( not as many as is claimed) were also directed at the rich and powerful who take the piss more so by not paying their fair dues in to the system and robbing you and me ordinary people.

2.4% of all DWP stuff is lost due to 'fraud', 3% if you add their "unreported" calcs, but 1.1% is also kept due to underpaying etc.

All in all it is a drop in the ocean as you say. Then we have rich landlord MP's and others ripping off tenants on state benefits for the maximum amount, while offering them rough accommodation..

yet you happily import millions more call them migrants and expect them to be housed and kept in benefits. While trying moral blackmail and psychology which is exactly what Smurf plays on and when he is told he can help out, suddenly he is only self isolates because of himself and nobody else actually counts.

[Borg Refinery]

Well at the risk of being serious not all that smurfy posts is untrue, there have been many cases of people who really are unable to survive without the benefits system.

For every person that takes the piss out of the system (and some do) I can give you as many examples of where people have been let down.

OK everyone take the piss out of smurfy,laugh at his expense (and yes I've done it) but I just wish as much effort in pointing out the massive tv's sky and the easy lifestyle of those on benefits ( not as many as is claimed) were also directed at the rich and powerful who take the piss more so by not paying their fair dues in to the system and robbing you and me ordinary people.

2.4% of all DWP stuff is lost due to 'fraud', 3% if you add their "unreported" calcs, but 1.1% is also kept due to underpaying etc.

All in all it is a drop in the ocean as you say. Then we have rich landlord MP's and others ripping off tenants on state benefits for the maximum amount, while offering them rough accommodation.

Then you have folks who report everything and everyone like the stasi, and others making sneery sideways comments as they're too a-frit to be upfront about what they want to say, kind of like council nazis checking the recycling, but too afraid to tell people they've 'sinned' so slipping fine sunder their door instead.

[cromwell]

Well at the risk of being serious not all that smurfy posts is untrue, there have been many cases of people who really are unable to survive without the benefits system.

For every person that takes the piss out of the system (and some do) I can give you as many examples of where people have been let down.

OK everyone take the piss out of smurfy,laugh at his expense (and yes I've done it) but I just wish as much effort in pointing out the massive tv's sky and the easy lifestyle of those on benefits ( not as many as is claimed) were also directed at the rich and powerful who take the piss more so by not paying their fair dues in to the system and robbing you and me ordinary people.

Well I hope they don't give smurfy the 17 grand they received yesterday thanks to my graft. So he can sit on his backside reporting his neighbours. Fecks sake.

OK Sheeps fair enough but I am speaking more for the people who are let down rather than mounting a defence of smurfy bashing tourists ,various other groups and well being smurfy.

[cromwell]

Well at the risk of being serious not all that smurfy posts is untrue, there have been many cases of people who really are unable to survive without the benefits system.

For every person that takes the piss out of the system (and some do) I can give you as many examples of where people have been let down.

OK everyone take the piss out of smurfy,laugh at his expense (and yes I've done it) but I just wish as much effort in pointing out the massive tv's sky and the easy lifestyle of those on benefits ( not as many as is claimed) were also directed at the rich and powerful who take the piss more so by not paying their fair dues in to the system and robbing you and me ordinary people.

[Borg Refinery]

As for Sharon (20) Stone, one wonders how many auld pensioners now retired from the glorious world of holywrood and harrow have the energy to keep up the running down memory lane.

[papasmurf]

lmfao.

Nothing funny about it. I would have thought you would have known that the Maximus DWP assessment centre in Glasgow is known as Lourdes because of the disgusting reputation it has for wrongly finding very disabled and very ill people fit for work.