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« New torture photos from Abu Ghraib are 'old news' | Main | Lest it breed »
February 17, 2006Amorous self-censorship (and they called it puppy love)
The Scum - Terrorvision (Editorial 17 Feb 2005): Who exactly is running the BBC - Osama Bin Laden? It looks worryingly like he is as Auntie considers pulling a 1-million-pound Spooks episode because it shows a terrorist being shot dead. The target is portrayed as an Osama henchman and the Beeb is worried about reprisals. But a terrorist is a terrorist. And right now, almost all terrorists are acting in the name of al-Qaeda. They are at war with us. If we are cowed into timorous self-censorship now, we are already losing the first battle.
(UPDATE - The story this editorial is based on is not based on facts. Now there's a surprise.)
It should be noted for the record that the new Abu Ghraib photos did not even rate a mention in yesterday's issue of the Sun or today's. Why, it's almost as if it never happened.
Sadly, like the photos themselves, this is 'old news'...
Bloggerheads - Page 3 - Model Propaganda: The Sun has backed almost every Bush initiative and played down every embarrassment. For example, when the images of torture in Abu Ghraib were front page news, The Sun buried it on page 6, with less than a 1/4 page, 130 words and a teeny-tiny picture. The next day, leading with George W. Bush's version of events, they used 229 words. And that was about it. (A week or so later, a Labrador puppy was thrown off an overpass and The Sun was there with a massive 3/4 page and 270 words.
Who exactly is running the Sun? Is it a puppy?
(See also the Sun's timorous brave and high-minded self-censorship regarding The Muhammad Cartoons.)
Posted by Manic on February 17, 2006 10:17 AM in the category Rupert 'The Evil One' Murdoch
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Comments
They also managed to overlook this statement from the BBC on the previous day:
"This episode is not about al-Qaeda. There is no question of an episode of Spooks being scrapped."
Posted by: Peter Gasston at February 17, 2006 10:51 AM
If you compare The Sun to The Mirror, the latter is more slavish but in a different manner. The Mirror both buries bad news (for Labour) stories farther into the paper and gives them significantly less column inches. Take the current issue on the woman denied Herceptin. Most papers made it into thier front splash or pages 2 or 3. The Mirror had it buried past page 15 with much less column inches.
The Bush/Iraq stuff is losing it's import for the general population. People know GWB is in the last couple of years of his presidency just as TB.
Posted by: irritant at February 17, 2006 10:54 AM
"almost all terrorists are acting in the name of al-Qaeda."
Are they?
Posted by: bigdaddymerk at February 17, 2006 11:39 AM
peter: Pfft! As if facts mattered.
irritant: The clock is ticking. These bastards need to be held to account or the next S.O.B. who comes along will know that he can get away with the same or worse.
bigdaddymerk: Shhh! It's best not to question Rebekah mid-rant... she may hit you.
Posted by: Manic at February 17, 2006 12:25 PM
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