Thursday, March 26, 2009

Radio 4's 'PM' to Cover the Dan Hannan Story

The PM Programme on Radio 4 will be covering the Dan Hannan video. Isn't it fab that the MSM is catching up with it a mere 48 hours after the event?

UPDATE: Channel 4 News is also covering it. I'm doing a short interview with them later.

Matthew Norman has written a fabulous attack on Brown in today's Independent. Here's its conclusion...
If Gordon, ever-more remotely marooned on his fantasy island of vast global influence and unfettered domestic command, backs down and muffles the stimulus hunting cry next week, it will leave him looking, to borrow from the resignation of yet another embittered former Chancellor, in office but not in power. If he doesn't – if he ploughs on with the demand for even more colossal spending and debt – he will be at war with the Bank of England, and at DefCon Two with his next-door neighbour.

There is no obvious way out of this one. He has been on his electoral death bed for ages, of course, ever since that definitive week in October 2007 when he cluck-cluck-clucked his way out of going to the country. But this may well be seen as the week he ran out of appeals for clemency, because the only quantative easing available to him now appears to involve the child-proof lid on that bottle of Downing Street strychnine.

26 comments:

Wrinkled Weasel said...

It's a damage limitation exercise.

Brillo told viewers on DP that they were going to have a discussion about news values and then proceeded to make the Hannan video look like a maverick YouTube hit. There was no discussion about it whatsoever, no implications, no lessons, no reflection on the role of the BBC and certainly no mention of Mark Mardell or Nick Robinson.

It will be a stitch up designed to make the BBC look good and make sure the story goes away.

Anonymous said...

Amazing, Labour MP Tom Harris cannot handle 3 minutes of gentle criticism.

Simon Gardner said...

Aah. I've just worked out what your trendy ‘MSM’ stands for.

Obvious when you think about it.

Simon Gardner said...

Please understand that non-coverage of MEPs is nothing new. British media and Westminster politicians always ignore MEPs and the European Parliament is never reported.

Compare and completely contrast German and French media.

Man in a Shed said...

BBC just covering itself, as it knows this example will come back to haunt it again and again.

Just shows you what you need to do to get right of centre comment taken notice of by the left wing BBC.

Wrinkled Weasel said...

Simon, not in GUM clinics it doesn't.

Anonymous said...

Dan the Man isn't going away - over 5000 comments and 712000 views.

Any comments, Mr Prime Minister?

Desperate Dan said...

I don't think PoliticsHome's mentioned it either.

Simon Gardner said...

Wrinkled Weasel said... [re: MSM] “Simon, not in GUM clinics it doesn't.”

I don’t think I wish to know that.

JP said...

Good news, but late. I expect this to be a BBC man with bucket of sand trying to throw water over the embarrassing fire that has broken out.

JoeF said...

The Hannan talk was also covered on Daily Politics at lunchtime.

Well, I'm off to see him in person tomorrow night, so that should be fun.

JP said...

oops, just noticed a slight problem with my last comment! Tricky for a man with a bucket of sand to throw water over a fire. Oh, work it out yourself!

The Grim Reaper said...

It was nice to see Tom Harris making a grade A pillock of himself yet again over this issue. If he's the best that the New Labour blogosphere can throw up, (in case you're reading this Dolly, sod off, you're not even in the running) their place on the opposition benches for the next 20 years is guaranteed.

Simon Gardner said...

Tom Harris MP is a bit of a plonker.

Unsworth said...

@ curly15

Tom Harris is clueless. He doesn't seem to know anything at all.

Johnson: "Patriotism, the last refuge of the Scoundrel" etc.....

JuliaM said...

"Aah. I've just worked out what your trendy ‘MSM’ stands for."

Good grief, you're slow!

Man in a Shed said...

Just watched the Daily Politics pretend to cover the Hannan speech. Standard issue BBC spite and spin - to place the story in "context".

The old hands just hate the internet, and can't manage to avoid letting it slip.

Dolly is beyond help - and should be left alone as he's damaging Labour far more than anyone else is.

Eckersalld said...

Well, the BBC have relented - there's a link to Hannan's video and it's even on the front page of the BBC News site.

They got there eventually.

Eckersalld said...

Let me take that back...

It actually links to the clip from Daily Politics, discussing Hannan's video. Almost reporting it then.

Anonymous said...

Just heard the report - Story presented as: 'Just another tory speaking against the PM ... nothing for the MSM here .... moving on now'

Anonymous said...

On the PM Prog, Sarah Wotsername asked Daniel: Why do you think the main broadcasters didn't cover your speech?

Such a disingenuous question opened a rather large door. But Daniel, being the gentleman and consummate politician he is, replied that a Conservative politician attacking a Labour prime minister wasn't news. But he went on to say that the world of political reporting had changed and was no longer intermediated by a small group of lobby correspondents. The internet enabled people to choose the news they were interested in and both the MSM and politicians needed to recognise this fact.

Bird said...

pol-e-tics 6.13pm

It was Caroline Quinn who asked the damned fool question of Daniel Hannan:
"Why haven't the mainstream media here covered your speech?"
I agree; he was too gentlemanly to point out that the BBC charter has a clause which says the left/liberal view must be protected at all times.

Simon Gardner said...

Bird said... “"Why haven't the mainstream media here covered your speech?" I agree; he was too gentlemanly...”

I saw C4 news too. It seems the viral effect is largely American - or so it was hinted.

BUT I point out AGAIN. The British media and the Westminster village consistently ignore the European Parliament. They largely ignore the Commission too.

This is not how it’s done in media in France and Germany. But it is how it’s done in Britain.

It’s a shame. But the broadcasters were merely doing what they always do - ignoring Brussels and Strasbourg.

No conspiracy (again) just service as normal.

Jim Baxter said...

Jon Snow called Hannan's use of the words 'a devalued Prime Minister of a devalued government' 'plagiarism' because it was what John Smith famously said to Major after Black Wednesday.

Perhaps Mr Snow would have said much the same after the Norway debate of 1940.

'But you are guilty of plagiarism, Mr Amery...'

Anonymous said...

I have been sent the Hannan utube vid eight times from contacts around the world. The man is a star. He has touched the party faithful in a way that Cameron simmply cannot. The way he looked Brown directly in the eye. Unwavering. Real charisma. Hannan must be given a safe UK seat and brought into the leadership of the Conservative Party.

Bert Rustle said...

Bob Basso is rather more constructive than Daniel Hannan http://www.worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=92999

... Bob Basso ... has created videos in which he portrays Thomas Paine, author of the "Common Sense" pamphlet that made the case for independence during the American Revolution.

Basso ... uses the YouTube presentations to condemn "non-representing representatives" and warns, "Only when they feel the almighty wrath of 'We The People' marching in the streets from California to New York shouting 'We're mad as hell and we want our country back' will they get the message they work for you." ...


Somewhat similar to what http://market-ticker.denninger.net/ has been writing for some time.