tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3323167987164959411.post3859490187552689478..comments2024-02-11T08:44:50.489+00:00Comments on Peter A Bell: Communication and understandingPeter A Bellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14204261467942498747noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3323167987164959411.post-48070599852800573352012-10-26T13:26:48.388+01:002012-10-26T13:26:48.388+01:00Even Shorter Answer: YesEven Shorter Answer: Yessmallwhitebearhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12096031385722227424noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3323167987164959411.post-15822755445386051422012-10-26T00:50:56.589+01:002012-10-26T00:50:56.589+01:00I don't think you can rely on any person to al...I don't think you can rely on any person to always make sense or to align themselves to your way of thinking. Do you think that a commentator working for the rabid Herald will have free reign in what they write? There might not be a direct instruction for a journalist to follow a particular line but instead some self censoring. One has to consider future job prospects if you rely on writing for your income. MacWhirter has some history in this department, remember the irrational hissy fit he had over Salmond and Murdoch. I took that as a proclamation that he was still on side.<br /><br />The unionist parties and mainstream media are only to aware of how real the prospect of Scottish independence has become and in consequence are becoming desperate. I can think of no other explanation for the ludicrous nature of some anti-independence stories in the last few months. However, they can't keep this up for the next two years which explains why they wanted the referendum "sooner rather than later". I look forward to the Scottish Government and Yes Campaign slowly shooting the ducks off the wall between now and autumn 2014.<br />fitheachhttp://www.fitheach.co.uk/life/goodbye-scotsmannoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3323167987164959411.post-44028834031308658072012-10-26T00:42:32.069+01:002012-10-26T00:42:32.069+01:00Short version: Andrew Neil is an oleaginous arse.Short version: Andrew Neil is an oleaginous arse.Peter A Bellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14204261467942498747noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3323167987164959411.post-16197820737487665622012-10-26T00:26:19.121+01:002012-10-26T00:26:19.121+01:00Agreed Peter, if an old hack like A Neil or his ve...Agreed Peter, if an old hack like A Neil or his very competent DP/TW staff and colleagues had sniffed at "a story" regarding the interview with AS, then it would have been run in all its glory all over the BBC when it aired.<br />The fact that nothing was heard about it until now, means ANeil is in fact being disingenuous and he is merely jumping on the Unionist bandwagon, in an attempt to discredit A Salmond and at the same time, grabbing a bit of triumphalism for himself.smallwhitebearhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12096031385722227424noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3323167987164959411.post-13914053043372430482012-10-25T21:22:45.203+01:002012-10-25T21:22:45.203+01:00I think you may be right about a "watershed&q...I think you may be right about a "watershed". I would have said tipping point. But I think it may be into 2014 before circumstances begin to erode complacency.<br /><br />Like British Labour in Scotland, much of the media still clings to the notion that all of this is just a blip, and that things will shortly return to "normal". They simply haven't accepted that Scottish politics has changed for good - in both senses of that term.Peter A Bellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14204261467942498747noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3323167987164959411.post-56410456204627676432012-10-25T21:18:02.327+01:002012-10-25T21:18:02.327+01:00doh! Meant to say ... Daily Mirror having a TINY f...doh! Meant to say ... Daily Mirror having a TINY footprint in Scotland ...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3323167987164959411.post-40256135605565653392012-10-25T21:15:40.591+01:002012-10-25T21:15:40.591+01:00Thanks for the reply ... well, Johnstone Press is ...Thanks for the reply ... well, Johnstone Press is currently trading at 9p a share :) I would suspect The Sun will come out as pro-independence, even if its just to stick it to the The Daily Record lol! But something has to happen to try and stem the tide of circulation loss at some point. With the Daily Mirror having a footprint in Scotland when will Trinity Mirror continue to suffer big circulation losses at the DR? I think 2013 will be a watershed in Scottish Media.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3323167987164959411.post-86803304664168026422012-10-25T20:52:44.888+01:002012-10-25T20:52:44.888+01:00Thanks for your comment.
The point about the gros...Thanks for your comment.<br /><br />The point about the gross imbalance in the media is well made. It is something many people have remarked on. But it's difficult to know what can be done about it.<br /><br />There is a serious market opportunity awaiting the first paper to go pro-independence. Sales will soar. Maybe tha will tempt one of them. But there would need to be a big staff clear-out as well.Peter A Bellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14204261467942498747noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3323167987164959411.post-46061773948502299122012-10-25T20:41:01.320+01:002012-10-25T20:41:01.320+01:00Apologies for the delay in your comment appearing....Apologies for the delay in your comment appearing. For some reason it was dumped in the spam folder.<br /><br />I would not dispute that Iain MacWhirter is at liberty to say what he likes. My complaint is that what he has chosen to write on this occasion is not up to the standard I would expect of him/ Not by a long way. He's gone for the easy option. Play along with the consensus. Don't ask awkward questions about what other journalists are saying. It's all a bit of a let-down.<br /><br />Not sure whether there was a plan. But the current stooshie has certainly distracted from the Nato policy shift and subsequent resignations. Silver lining?Peter A Bellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14204261467942498747noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3323167987164959411.post-57532235042632361642012-10-25T20:35:18.116+01:002012-10-25T20:35:18.116+01:00This reminds me of a couple of years back when Bil...This reminds me of a couple of years back when Bill O'Reilly on the Fox News channel interviewed Jon Stewart of the Daily Show. The interview was pre-recorded with a usually funny Stewart being pro-Obama and a usually obnoxious O'Reilly of course being anti-Obama. There was a string of questions about Obama which led to debate and argument. When the interview was aired Stewart went ballistic at O'Reilly on the Daily Show accusing Fox of cutting that segment of the interview which made Stewart sound like he was critical of the President, when in fact he was praising him. This led to Stewart demanding the transcript of the interview to be made public. He was successful and got a lot of media interest with it. Since then Fox and Bill O'Reilly's interviewing has been heavily scrutinised by the media and public at large. (the Stewart/O'Reilly ding dong is on YouTube to see). Unfortunately it seems that this utterly filthy and nasty selective techniques are being used on this side of the pond, unfortunately and worringly, we don't seem to have a major media outlet to scrutinise these things. Scottish media today feels like Soviet Russia circa 1980.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3323167987164959411.post-61678191281244490902012-10-25T19:48:51.186+01:002012-10-25T19:48:51.186+01:00Hello, regular reader here!
This whole stooshie h...Hello, regular reader here!<br /><br />This whole stooshie has been puffery and hot air about nothing. Everyone knows, and accepts, the convention of the Ministerial Code, but, that doesn't stop politicians and commentators from attempting to make capital with concocted indignation. The manufacturing of political capital only works because there is a large enough group of readers who do not know all the details or who, for whatever reason, do not bother to discover them. I commend you for presenting the facts in a cogent manner for those who do want to discover the truth.<br /><br />I do, however, diverge from your view on Iain MacWhirter. He is free to write what he wants in the publications of his choice and everyone else is free to read and or pay for his contributions if they want. Personally, I long since gave up paying for or clicking on any links to the unionist press not because of columnists like MacWhirter but propaganda dressed up as news.<br /><br />Of much more concern to me is the nature of reporting by the BBC which is supposed to be impartial but is acting like a colonial mouthpiece and Scotland is, almost, the last outpost.<br /><br />None of this media storm will make any difference to Scotland's future relationship with the EU. Legal precedents, political realities and logic dictate that Scotland will be a member of the EU upon independence.<br /><br />Furthermore, I suspect that Nicola Sturgeon understood the significance of what she said in Parliament and it is part of an elaborate unionist trap. I hope time will confirm my suspicion.fitheachhttp://www.fitheach.co.uk/life/goodbye-scotsmannoreply@blogger.com