Conservative MP Zac Goldsmith yesterday attacked Ofcom’s decision to clear Channel 4 of misleading viewers during both a report on his election campaign expenditure in July last year and his appearance on Channel 4 News with Jon Snow the following day.
Channel 4 had focused on discrepancies between Goldsmith’s actual expenditure and the declarations of expenditure on campaign materials such as signs and branded jackets. During the subsequent interview Goldsmith and Snow maintained a heated debate of which Goldsmith spent the first 10 minutes disputing Snow’s statement on Twitter that Goldsmith had originally refused to appear on Channel 4, despite interviewing with Sky.
This morning saw an internet free-for-all as savvy browsers flocked to a blog that was flouting the paywall and positing articles written by Times journalist Caitlin Moran. There was even a Twitter account set up to direct readers to the site.
The Times response to the situation was to have the blog taken down immediately (the Twitter account has also vanished) while Moran’s tweeted the rogue blogger: “I applaud you, my friend. Very quietly, but I applaud you.”
Our new Government is still learning the ropes…and the first few weeks in power have shown just how tangled those ropes are when it comes to handling the media.
Today another cabinet minister, this time Health Minister Andrew Lansley managed to direct a comprehensive shot to his own foot when he informed the BMA conference in Brighton that Jamie Oliver had got it wrong about school meals. We can imagine his press team’s delight that the Minister was giving a bold and controversial policy statement “yes Minister…a very, er brave decision”.
The England team have weathered the storm and are into the last 16 of the World Cup. As usual, certain characters have emerged from the team such as goal scorer Jermaine Defoe or manager Fabio Capello to take the spotlight and portray the ‘personality’ of the England team as a whole – a personality that may well be based on fact, or the manipulation of public feeling at the time. The success of Wednesday is cause for English celebration certainly, but one look at news headlines reveals a hyper-confidence generated by the press. The Guardian’s sports headline read ‘Mission Accomplished’ while the Telegraph stated ‘Bring On The Germans’ when in actual fact, the team played Slovenia and the result was only 1-0.
The promise of the forthcoming England vs. Germany match has ensured that the victory over Slovenia and the draws in the earlier group games are nothing but a hazy memory as the English press fill the public with promises – The Daily Express’ headline was ‘Land of Hope and Glory’. Forget the team’s inability to ease to the top of their group, the media – and therefore much of the public too – have a distinct tunnel vision for the final on July 11th. Read the rest of this entry »
England’s World Cup campaign has been turbulent to say the least. Think back to John Terry being stripped of his captaincy after revelations of adultery came to light several months ago. The team have suffered not only on the pitch but in the players’ handling of the media during the tournament.
Wayne Rooney highlighted the frustration with both his and the team’s performance with an outburst against the England supporters who had proceeded to boo the team after their match against Algeria. It was understandable for him to feel betrayed by his fans – the very people he was there to represent – but a derogatory outburst was not the way to vent those frustrations.
So now we know. But for days before the budget speech, we were well softened up. Reminded frequently that every single man woman and child in Britain will share the pain. The lights will go out all over Britain, and we will not see them lit again until…the next boom.
This year’s General Election has seen many a political blunder, which put politicians’ media handling skills to the test. Managed differently, the image of the person in question could be cast in an entirely different light.
Take Alex Salmond, for example. Accidentally caught posing in front of an advertisement for the new horror film, ‘The Crazies’. The message he sent to the world was a picture of himself standing under the words ‘The Crazies’ – in his party’s trademark colours, no less. Read the rest of this entry »
A debate is currently raging in The Times about the Government’s handling of the release of the Libyan Bomber. Today, the Education Secretary told reporters: “I have to say that none of us wanted to see the release of al-Megrahi,”. But rewind to Saturday, when the Prime Minister told reporters he “respected” the decision of the Scottish Executive to free the man convicted of killing all 243 passengers and 16 crew members on Pan Am Flight 103, and 11 in the Scottish town of Lockerbie.
