This entry was posted on
Tuesday, March 7th, 2006 at
9:25 am and is filed
under Tony ‘King Blair.
There’s a glorious letter in the Independent today. It makes me want to learn more about the author:
Sir: It gets more like the Colosseum every day. I am increasingly sickened by watching the gutter press behaving like the lions.
Tessa Jowell is my MP, and a very good one. I don’t know enough to condemn her or not but I know that the way certain sections of the Press are handling things is appalling. It’s a kind of torture by media. We’re used to trial by media, but this is different.
EMMA HITCHCOCK
LONDON SE24
UPDATE – A liitle bird tells me that BT has no record of an Emma Hitchcock (nor any E. Hitchcock) living in SE24. Or anywhere in London, for that matter. Electoral rolls, anyone? I simply must know who’s responsible for the glorious spin of ‘torture by media’… such genius deserves to be rewarded.
UPDATE – Electoral rolls from 2001-2006 checked and re-checked, and still no E Hitchcock. I think we have a ringer.
By goatchurch March 8, 2006 - 7:28 pm
Voters should be in favour of their MP’s losing their ministerialships. It makes them available to represent their constituents again.
By Loz March 9, 2006 - 8:33 am
For the last two years publically available Electoral Rolls have allowed people to opt-out from being printed, they would only be available to someone who worked in that constituencies electoral roll office, so unless you have a mole there I suppose there’s always the chance that Ms. Hitchcock has opted to go private.
By Manic March 9, 2006 - 9:40 am
I’m willing to acknowledge that possibility, but:1. The Anne Milton affair has left me somewhat jaded on matters of ‘independent’ constituents speaking on behalf on an MP/candidate.2. The “torture by media” line *stinks* of Neo Labour spin.
By goatchurch March 9, 2006 - 9:29 pm
Also, people who are paranoid+organized enough to remove their names from the electoral register don’t normally go and ask for it to be published in a national newspaper. Good detective-work, Tim.