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Wednesday 20 March 2019

The Fourth Estate

The position of our national print and broadcast media on Brexit is telling. Here is my somewhat subjective snapshot

Telegraph - The only pro-Brexit broadsheet left, indeed the only pro-Brexit print national left. But gamely features columns by arch Remainiacs Blair, Hague et al from time to time just to draw a thousand angry negative comments for each

Daily Express - Was a staunch Leaver, but I suspect the advertisers have got to it. It can't afford to lose it's reader demographic so now punts for the Selmayr-Robbins Treaty

Sun - Likewise, a soft Leaver with a shouty voice

Daily Remain - Was a staunch Leaver until its owners changed editor from Dacre to Greggs. Remain Online maintains its success for an internet audience that will skip a Brexit story for a long page of photos of Megan. Actually a soft remainer that features just enough Leave columns to breathe - with comments filled with angry, betrayed Leavers

All the Rest - Remain and always have been. Mirror, Times, Guardian, FT, i online and of course the broadcast media BBC and Sky. And the free lifestyle adsheet in London the 'Evening Standard' which used to be a newspaper and whose lifestyle wallpaper and chic nik-naks columns are now managed by failed Remain Chancellor George Osborne (Osborne and Little Paints and Papers Ltd).

So. One paper and not a single national broadcaster. That's the power of the global corporates' stock market power and advertising budgets for you.

28 comments:

jack ketch said...

That's the power of the global corporates' stock market power and advertising budgets for you.

So you're saying that Big Business -of the sort that can afford to advertise in the national print media- thinks that Brexit is a Bad Idea, infact the Baddest Idea since Franz said 'lets do Sarajevo this morning, Schatzi'?

Who'd have thunk it.

On the upside for Leavers, it does boost their 'Dolchstoss' myth and gives us Brits something to whinge about for at least the next century.

DeeDee99 said...

It's to the credit of the British people that they are standing up to these corporate and media bullies and are demanding the real Brexit they voted for.

Stephen J said...

So currently the only outlets for people like me, is people like you Raedwald.

Never fear, don't get overexcited, Sorearse and chums will be after you, after facebook.

Which is the only point where we disagree, I reckon that what we are seeing being done to the Alex Jones's, the PJ Watson's and yes even the yaxley-loathings, whatever one feels about them is the direction that the establishment would like to take all media... Out of the reach of ordinary folk!

Just hoping that Bannon maintains interest long enough to keep the London centric Breitbart pages going.

It's the last refuge for this democrat and patriot.

Mark said...

Yes Jack, big business loves the EU. Who would have thunk it? Might be a reason so many of us are against it?

Please give all this "Ooh look at me I know a few words of German,
What a sophisticated "european" I am" bollocks a rest. It's not big and it's not clever and it certainly doesn't help your arguments.

I think we all know the difference between a stab in the back and blatantly pissing in our faces.

Raedwald said...

R-W I'd agree to a point - but it strikes me that the Yaxley-Lemons and their like are actually working on behalf of the global corporates; by deflecting public anger away from the elite 1%, the globalists, towards Muslim shopkeepers working 70 hpw, they're doing a great job of protecting the guilty.

Oh I don't dispute a few hundred semi-literate primitives whose minds are back some fetid post-mediaval village in the 'stans have wreaked havoc in our liberal and open society, and that thousands of young innocents have suffered dreadfully, but against the globalists behind them, who have used them as much as they have abused us, their crimes are insignificant.

Billy Marlene said...

Masochistic listening to BBC news programmes is bad enough without subjection to print editions. I can hardly bear to read the headlines, let alone the content.

My saviour is the monthly light thud of Viz arriving through my letterbox. Without the normality of the Fat Slags, Gilbert Ratchet, Drunken Bakers and - returning this month - FELIX & his AMAZING UNDERPANTS I would be jumping a flight to Dignitas.

Stephen J said...

That is not my point Raedwald... It is not what those types are saying, it is the fact that they are saying it and people can read what they have published.

As per Simon Wiesenthal.

Very soon, the only voice will be not Paul Joseph Watson cleverly ranting about whatever he rants about, it will be Josef Goebbels (or Tony Blair) telling us his facts.

We already have this on LBC which just about pays lipservice to non-corporatist views, by allowing our Nige onto the air. Of course the rest of the time it is wall to wall James "1984" (evidence based) O'Brien, or Sheila whatever, spouting their best corporatist views and channelling Sorearse.

Cedric Pugh said...

It's what they did pre-2016 that matters.

Of course they're shifting now, as it becomes clear that any kind of exit will make life materially worse for the UK and for Ireland's people.

They should own their mess, as should the Leave voters.

Stephen J said...

Cedric, I prefer my mess, to your order.

The media has always been owned by the establishment.

Anonymous said...

" it becomes clear that any kind of exit will make life materially worse for the UK "

That isn't clear to me, but it would be worth suffering a bit of poverty to escape from the EU Empire. Anyway, the British economy is exceptionally prosperous at present, so we can stand a period of recession. A Marxist government would do far more damage than leaving the EU customs union.

Don Cox

Dave_G said...


Raed - Disappointed to hear you quote " Muslim shopkeepers working 70 hpw" as targets for Yaxley-Pipewrench (and his followers?) when his actual target is far more widely known and appreciated. Such 70hr workers are precisely the people this country wants and needs (and are welcomed) but the others....?

I've always lambasted the media for their targetted and biased content and recent events are being used heavily to progress the censorship that is 'required' to prevent the people learning the truth. The warning by r-w is apt, prominent and growing.



jack ketch said...

and it certainly doesn't help your arguments. Mark

But ad-homs do yours? No point in Leavers whinging about the Golden Shower, when they voted for it.

Span Ows said...

@Jack ketch: those corporations were always very openly for Remain
@Cedric: I voted presuming a harsh downturn but as per R-W happy to accept it as 'our mess' to be sorted by us.
@Dave_G, agree 100%, anyone who calls TR/Yaxley/whatever a racist clearly doesn't know or care to know. Also he openly protects "Muslim shopkeepers working 70 hpw" and has many amongst his friends.
@Billy Marlene: very glad to hear VIZ is still going: their 1989 Christmas album should be a treasure in all libraries: Roger Melly, Parky, Mrs Brady old Lady, the Snowman (oh no, not that fecking kid again), Finbar Saunders etc al.

Mark said...

Jack,

What May is doing is not what I voted for.

Mark The Skint Sailor said...

Cedric Pugh: As I ticked the leave box on the referendum, I did so with a clear conscience.

Knowing full well there may be a short period of adjustment, it was still a small price to pay to give a country free from unelected rule and law makers to my children and grandchildren. The EU machine is not government, it's tyranny.

Once so commanded by the people, it was the government's job to smooth out any bumps in the process of leaving. It was not their job to thwart leaving, nor to come up with a scheme to look like leaving but not actually leaving.

Unfortunately it looks like the government and Parliament in general, did not get the message and go about their task with good intent.

Sadly, it appears the people will have to send another message to Parliament at the next election, when it comes.

Matt said...

Should one assume if one's posts aren't showing across multiple threads that you are persona non grata? Helps to know so one can get on with other things.

jack ketch said...


What May is doing is not what I voted for.


Methinks the Lady doth protest overmuch.

I don't know whom you voted for in the last GE but if Leavers voted for either May or Corbyn , they obviously wanted what they are now getting...or they were gullible enough to believe the promises of politicians who (for the most part) were passionate Remainers until the 24.06.16. Either 'you' (as in the collective, I try not to Adhom) were masochists of a sort that would have left De Sade shaking his head or so gullible that they should be accompanied at all times by a responsible adult.

jack ketch said...


@Jack ketch: those corporations were always very openly for Remain
-Span Ows

Yep...probably following the dictates of their balance sheets, its a 'business thing' I'd assume. Committing financial Hari-Kiri tends to piss off share holders...strangely enough.

Mark said...

Jack

Oh come on!

Yes we knew that they establishment were remainers. Yes we knew that the referendum was only held as they expected a remain vote, but the referendum was held and the promise to respect the outcome was clearly stated.

This isn't the usual bullshit about internal policies and promises. This is about the fundamental sovereignty of parliament and the country.

They clearly weren't going to give up easily and delays and obfuscation were to be expected. But this? How many times has that woman and her grotesque herd of familiars blatantly lied?

Not that it matters but I've never voted labour and haven't voted Tory since 1992. But even if I had, why should I, or anyone expect this?

And why do you have such messianic belief in the unelected Brussels politburo if national elected politicians behave like this. What actually were remainers voting to stay in? How gullible do you have be to believe the pro EU bollocks?

So shouldn't the referendum have been held at all (that clearly was the preferred option and Cameron only proposed it because he didn't think he would win a majority) or should it have been held with the options "remain" and "leave - put a cross here only if you're stupid enough to believe us"

Span Ows said...

@Matt said, 13:36

Only very short time whilst posts are pre-moderated. It says under the comment box "Comment moderation has been enabled. All comments must be approved by the blog author."

jack ketch said...

And why do you have such messianic belief in the unelected Brussels politburo

I do? Perhaps you haven't had the misfortune of reading my comments here over the last couple of years. I am possibly even less enamoured with Brussels than most leavers.

Mark said...

Jack,

Perhaps so but you did appear rather vexed previously at the thought of losing EU "citizenship" and were less than complimentary in comparing leavers to the more historically rambunctious of our angular craniumed European brethren. And let's not forget all that BrexSShite business.

Just extrapolating from the balance of insults.

jack ketch said...


Just extrapolating from the balance of insults.
-Mark

And you are correct in so far that i AM still mightily pissed at being deprived of my EU ' Citizenship' by a stahlhelm (just to chuck in some Kraut to keep up appearances) wearing mob of brexsshiteurs (just so I don't get out of practice). I doubt that anger will ever fade.
However that doesn't mean I am in any way nasally 'blind' to the stench of corruption wafting across the channel nor the manifold downsides to EU membership.

Mark said...

Jack,

This is not a facetious question.

If the EU stinks of corruption (and this is the corruption of centuries for much of Europe) why do you think it's going to work politically? And remember what the end goal is, this having been clearly stated since 2016 (finally!)

Never mind the zero sum economy (Germany wins everybody else loses) that is the politically inspired Eurozone disaster. Politics can be fudged, doomsday economonics can't.

If you (before you kick off, the generic "you") want this country to be subsumed in the EU what will that look like? Not what you'd like it to look like.

I don't know what Brexit will look like, good bad or indifferent. I would posit that there is rather more evidence of the coming EU implosion than any long term problems from us leaving.

They've been trying to resurrect the Roman empire for something like 1200 years. Why is it going to succeed now?

Dave_G said...


Committing financial Hari-Kiri tends to piss off share holders...strangely enough.

Seriously? You expect big businesses to be losers in any No Deal Brexit? Instead of £gazillion they might make £gazillion - £10 but, as is much more likely, they will cream it in no matter which route we take - such is the way of big business, such is it ever will be.

The No Deal situation has bugger all to do with trade and everything to do with the EU failing to achieve its monopolistic, totalitarian, dictatorial aims and instead being exposed as a high-cost, low-productivity, red-tape-infested environment that other member countries will likely seek to leave in droves.

And that's aside from the imposed immigration crisis they're manufacturing.

jack ketch said...


it's going to work politically?-Mark

Short answer because at some point Raed is going to get pissed off with me taking this thread OT.

Why its going to work politically? Because it already does, despite or maybe because of the corruption. Just take today's events alone. Tusk-a failed Polish politician hated at home to almost Blairian levels- has (I ASSUME) managed to get the democratically elected leaders of 27 other sovereign, independent states to agree on a 'line' to take regarding May's plea for an extension. 27 leaders who all have their own democratically, elected, sovereign parliaments, their own 'troublesome priests' to deal with. That's 27 European nations who wouldn't, left to their own devices, be able to agree on a common colour standard for Police Cars...let alone what sound the siren should make.

jack ketch said...

You expect big businesses to be losers in any No Deal Brexit? Instead of £gazillion they might make £gazillion - £10 but, as is much more likely, they will cream it in no matter which route we take - such is the way of big business, such is it ever will be. Dave G

I expect the Shareholders in any No Deal Brexit to be the losers, and the poor sods on the conveyor belt. The Big Biz themselves (ie the board/CEO) have been wargaming Brexit options since Farage first crawled out of Mordor whinging it was his birthday and he wanted a precious...or referendum. They will 'cut the bottom', 'trim', 'diversify', issue stock warnings and then accept a few paltry millions in bonuses for 'taking the tough decisions'.

Mark said...

European nations "left to their own devices". Can't have that can we!