Tags
(not satire – it’s UK today)
UPDATE: Willard Foxton and Hugh Muir have both now apologised for not sourcing their original stories properly.
Like many bloggers, tweeters and other social media users – I’ve got countless examples of how the mainstream media is getting more and more behind the curve when it comes to keeping up-to-date with the news.
But could some professional hacks sometimes be deliberately trying to take the credit for news stories knowing full well they were pipped to the post well beforehand by social media?
There are many examples I could have chosen to illustrate this but I’ve picked just two – one from a left-wing rag and another from a right-wing one – just to prove this might be less a case of political bias and more a case of professional argy-bargying on the part of media-industry hacks.
Way back in November, social media users noticed that ex-BNP member Claire Khaw had joined the Conservative Party. This was news because Claire was thrown out of the BNP for being too extreme (!) – and subsequently described joining the Tories as “like coming home”.
Here’s my blog post about it from November:
AK 47s and swastika flags. The face of today’s Conservative Party?
There was nothing in the mainstream media about this story – despite the fact it was news which could have and should have given the Tories a public relations nightmare.
Strange then that two months later, the Guardian’s Hugh Muir berated the Conservatives for taking over a month to get round to throwing Claire out of their party. A bit rich considering the Guardian itself only finally reported on the whole affair after the Tories got rid of her.
But then, in the article Hugh admits that ‘bloggers’ had been “quick to notice her chequered past” – with a link to the blogpost on this blog.
Well, that’s not quite true. Bizarrely, he linked just to the photograph on the blogpost – as if Mr Muir couldn’t quite bring himself to link to an article which quite clearly shows his own and his colleagues’ failure to notice a story which had actually broken months before.
The second example is from the Telegraph. At the beginning of this month, I wrote a blogpost about how 3UK had admitted they had created a new category of website which they were censoring along with ‘adult content’. They referred to this category as ‘mature content’ and they admitted it included political websites like this one.
Here’s the blogpost from January 4th:
Satire like Porn? How 3UK are bringing Chinese-style political censorship of web to UK
The post was widely shared and created a lot of interest particularly from tech websites – whose readers realised the serious consequences of 3UK’s actions more than average people.
Again though – there was nothing in the mainstream media. Until that is, I noticed this article in the Telegraph 3 days ago by technology journalist Willard Foxton:
In the article, Willard writes eloquently about how serious it is that “phone providers are automatically blocking access to certain websites for mature content, rather than adult content”.
Again he admits he got the information from a blogger but can’t quite bring himself to link directly to the original article. Instead, bizarrely he linked to an article on another website which in turn wrote about and linked to the original blogpost.
So what does all this mean?
It’s simple. It means overpaid hacks are worried sick they’re going to be made redundant by social media users who are doing the job better than they are – but for free.
It’s no wonder professional journalists are all so keen for people like Lord McAlpine to shut us all up then, is it?
.
Related articles by Tom Pride:
Satire like Porn? How 3UK are bringing Chinese-style political censorship of web to UK
AK 47s and swastika flags. The face of today’s Conservative Party?
I hope Lord McAlpine isn’t going to sue me for saying this?
The Day Satire Died. Daily Mail to sue blogger for defamation of character!
Oops! The Daily Mail accidentally supports a fascist party. Again.
Sobbing Kelvin Mackenzie to get job as news reader in North Korea.
Daily Mail Apologises To Its Readers After Admitting Publishing Something True
Diet High In Red Tops Increases Risk of Heart Attacks
Met police loaned retired mounted officer to Rebekah Brooks.
.
Please feel free to comment – you don’t need to register and I’m extremely minimal with the moderating – so please go ahead.
.
By the way, if you click on any of these buttons below, you’ll be doing me a favour by sharing this article with other people. Thanks:
Pride's Purge 
Isn’t it that MSM hacks are told the stories they can or can’t touch anyway? Their political dissembling in place of actual news reporting is why so many are turning to alternative media.
LikeLike
Well, they might want to shut up bloggers but what will they do for news stories then?
The analogy I often use is like traders in the stock market. The best ones are those who see undervalued bombed out companies and buy shares when the other 90% of hopeless traders are panic selling. Then when the share price recovers and has doubled and the mainstream herd begin to think they are missing out on a good thing – they start buying. Meanwhile the clever ones are selling.
The vast majority of journalists are truly hopeless. They cannot recognise a good story when one is staring them in the face and when they do, they are too inept and frightened to run it.
LikeLike
The prestitutes don’t bite the hand(s) that feed them. It seems they aren’t interested in chasing stories that might in some way compromise their masters.
LikeLike
Pingback: How media hacks are desperately trying to keep up with social media – and failing | Welfare, Disability, Politics and People's Right's | Scoop.it
Yes – the stock market trader analogy is a good one.
LikeLike
Think you nailed it there tom. Msm would like nothing better than have bloggers silenced . the neat thing is that bloggers don’t have to look at lawyers before they write stuff. however I see they do try to use lawyers to silence blogs . witeness Philip hensher from independent threatening after atos site after he deliberatly misquoted a redpondant on that site trying to make them look like benefit scrounger by taking a snippet of their post out of context. all the more concerning as it may be the fact that the respondant could have commited suicide after they posted that. piece on after atos site.
LikeLike
Exactly Bob. Media hacks are all for free speech when it’s their own under threat – but more than happy to see everyone else’s shut up when it suits them.
LikeLike
How very pertinent that you should write this, now, today. I have just finishing reading a very interesting piece of writing on Z blogs about psychopaths. It was intelligent, cogent and well referenced. Now I’m not going to say the newspapers should spew out millions of references for work, that would be impractical but when they have sources that they quote from it is only polite to recognise that source. It seems that university has failed to teach manners (LOL). For those of us that have a thirst for education and news, the shambles that call themselves The Press these days really let us down. I no longer buy newsprint, why should I when it is full of spurious articles that are laid out in such a way that we follow the advertising as it holds more interest for us and boy do they know how to advertise. whether it is for the next phone they want you to fall for or which type of polish you should purchase, they are all now just very large advertising space, of course the advertising has its purpose and that is to lead us by the nose, put our brains to one side and fall in fully with the wish of the baron that desires to shape the world in his image, we have been softened up for the two ot three paragraphs of the body politik. Murdoch, Barcley Bros. and Desmond all vying to be kings of the world and the employee has to achieve this aim for his master. this is why you and others like you are successful, we get to know you and we know however we choose to think, you are doing your best to show us a different world and long may it last. Sorry for the long spiel
LikeLike
By the way I gave you a mention on this blog piece on aunty admin on the after atos site.
Following mc scalpines attempt to fleece sorry sue ppl who write blogs it seems that hacks are trying it on too.
Have you read the hensher vs after atos thing yet ?
LikeLike
The above post by bobchewie reminded me about lawyers who sign off news articles and deal with libel threats on behalf of the media. A little while back I got into a debate with someone on ‘News Statesmen’ (see exchange below) about the McAlpine litigation and I made a comment that many media lawyers were rubbish and quoted a link to the website of one individual, Robert Dee – a tennis player, who obtained libel settlements from dozens of media outlets for alleged libel. The ‘libel’ complained of was an article repeated in most media outlets which covered a story about Robert Dee being the ‘worst professional tennis player in the world’. Only one newspaper disputed the libel claim and the judge agreed that just having lost 54 tennis matches on the trot – he was indeed the worst. All those media corporations listed on the website below who paid out libel damages (including the BBC yet again) must feel like total mugs. This was the relevant part of the debate.
……………………..
http://www.newstatesman.com/business/2012/11/lord-mcalpine-twitter-and-libel-law-facts
Fri, 2012-11-23 11:54 — Incredulous
All significant media outlets have a substantial legal advisory team which checks anything which may lead to litigation. Editors spend time every day checking out that they are staying within the law. Even after legal advice, they may still find themselves falling foul of defamation cases; something they try their best to avoid, as they are very expensive in terms of potential compensation payouts and their own legal costs.
Fri, 2012-11-23 18:40 — Loverat
Not sure that the majority of people have comitted a crime as such but I will reserve judgement on who done what on Twitter for now.
If you think medIa outlets have good legal teams have a look at a case – Dee v Telegraph. But have a look at the claimant’s website first –
http://www.robertdee.org/
See how many apologies and how much money he obtained from those great media legal teams.
………………….
One thing I have learned over the last two years, Always work on the assumption that a lawyer knows nothing about libel law and journalists are stupid. That way you can either become a successful libel claimant (and make a career from suing newspapers) or an effective defendant should a libel threat ever come your way.
LikeLike
Take some satisfaction in knowing how many people you educate x
LikeLike
Joanna – that’s right. Journalists usually are very careful about mentioning – or protecting – sources of stories so it seems to me it’s a deliberate attempt on the behalf of the mainstream media to try to sideline social media.
It may also be just plain old-fashioned snobbery – “oh those amateur bloggers aren’t worth mentioning…”. “They don’t even get paid for what they do, don’t you know?”
Thanks for the comment by the way- not such a long ‘spiel’ actually.
LikeLike
Yes – disgusting behaviour on the part of Hensher. Pathetic little man.
LikeLike
Loverat – very interesting and very true.
If there’s one thing I’ve learnt in life so far it’s that experts know much, much less than you think.
LikeLike
Thanks Jayne. I do. 🙂
LikeLike
Do you think you should be paid for what you do Tom, especially as it trumps most professional journalism and is extremely funny to boot at times?
LikeLike
I just sent an opinion to politics today who were discussing pay increases for mp’s and how it equates with journalists pay who work for the bbc. According to Andrew Neil the only attribute necessary for a pay rise is intellect, forget about compassion,common sense, ethics or even intelligence itself which appears to be lacking in both professions, all which are not only necessary but is priceless.
LikeLike
end of last sentence should read ,”all of which are not only necessary but priceless”.
LikeLike
Pingback: Innocent victims caught in the conflict between the mainstream press and social media | Pride's Purge
Pingback: How Cameron’s plans to block on-line porn could also block political sites | Pride's Purge
Pingback: The wonders of blogging – insults, trolls, libel and death threats | Pride's Purge
Pingback: Singaporean hacker creates free programme to bypass Cameron’s internet censorship | Pride's Purge
Pingback: Tory MP’s own website blocked by porn filter she advocated | Pride's Purge
Pingback: Shocking new survey – Conservatives have biggest cocks in House of Commons | Pride's Purge