Why is the Diana interview a bigger news story than the farmers being shafted over Brexit?

[JackieWeaverHandforthCouncil]

Just that really? Yes it’s an interesting story but the fact the deal means Australian farmers can sell their produce cheaper in the U.K. which will decimate British farming is a much bigger one.

Truss has to be the worlds worst negotiator. The Australians must be pissing themselves laughing. They have farms bigger than the U.K. and can flood the market.

It’s always been the same. I remember she got a trim, literally had an inch off her hair, the sun had it as front page news with a before and after picture spread across 3 pages in full colour. There was something important going on (I can’t remember which major news event but it was major) and it was sidelined by Princess Diana getting her hair trimmed.

This isn't about her though. Not really.

It's about our public service broadcaster that lots of people trust. And that the public pay for. Having (well we'll see what comes out) but at the very least knowing that there was really improper behaviour by a journalist and covering it up.

That's why it's a big story.

The BBC has behaved in a deceptive, unethical way. They have lied. The journalist involved fabricated documents to convince a woman who was not in a great place mental health wise (whatever you think of her, she was experiencing difficulties) in order to get a 'scoop'.

The BBC have subsequently lied, covered it all up.

That is a big deal. Because if that's what they get up to. What else have they been up to.

To dismiss this as Diana gossip is not the right thing to do.

This is a body funded by the public, and trusted to give us unbiased info etc. Engaging in extremely dodgy behaviour and then trying to hide it.

That's why it's news.

I mean I never really understood the whole lady di thing but this story is not about haircut etc.

What the BBC, a license payer funded service, allowed to happen to a vulnerable woman is absolutely despicable. This isn't some tabloid tittle tattle - it's a serious case of maltreatment and fraud. Aside from faking financial documents, she was led down a dangerous path of fear and paranoia, all to forward a journalist's career.

But hey shes just a woman so it couldn't possible be important I guess

I’m in Australia and I have to say, this deal confuses me. Australian food is much more expensive than British food, we always comment on it when we come back. So I don’t see how Australian “cheap”’produce will flood the U.K. market, as it just isn’t cheaper, and that’s without including the costs of transporting it to the U.K.
It is very high quality, so that’s good, but also, we have such strict tariffs on food imports over here to protect our farming economy (hence why food is pricy).
I don’t know lots about this, only that, from my experience, Australian food is really excellent quality, but probably 20-30% more expensive than U.K. food, especially meat. I regularly pay $15 for a medium sized chicken (about £8 I think?) and this isn’t even organic (not caged though).
My only assumption is that this deal has gone through to smooth the path to trade deals where there really IS an economic advantage.
But look, you don’t have to buy the food from overseas, presumably it’s marked, so if you don’t like it, vote with your wallets.

And it's a very long way away.

How is shipping all this food from the other side of the world a positive thing?

On cost. We went to Germany before covid. It was I'd say 20% cheaper than here. Austria is about the same. Switzerland is pricey as fuck.

But anyway. If aus food is more expensive then add on shipping taxes etc pushes it up even more.

We have had new Zealand lamb here for ages and it's not way cheaper than ours.

We import loads of fruit and veg from Europe as well, what's going to happen about that? The perishable stuff.

People will vote with their wallets.

We are used to cheap plentiful food.

God only knows what could be brought in to make that happen.

I only buy local food in general, diary, veg, meat and fish. People priorities holidays and hobbies, I do with my food. I am worried what Brexit is going to bring to do to our food chain.

Why people give a crap about Diana, I am not sure, but the BBC has never been impartial, at the moment Richard Sharp is the chairman, after nearly 10 years of Johnson saying the BBC needed a Tory in charge, he got his wish 5 months ago, a government can put people in charge of imparital companies, they stop being impartial.

Besides, farming isn't good for the environment.

Surviving on cardboard and paper are you? What a ridiculous comment.

@JackieWeaverHandforthCouncil

Yes. Yes I genuinely do care about their land. I want it looked after and not built over. Maybe the government can take over failed farms and have the land owned by the state so it can’t be built on.

If you can’t sell your sheep, Derxa, you’ll have little choice but to sell up unless you’re a hobby farmer.

Wow. Nasty.

Goodness knows.
I've just watched a CNN article about it!
No mention of Palestinian/Israeli conflict or in fact any other news outside the USA.

Apart from the British Royal family, I truly don't get the American obsession them.

@Nightbear

We can have also end up with cheap American meat - stuffed full of hormones and antibiotics and intensively farmed with little regard for animal welfare. It’s a shame so many farming communities voted for it.

I loved in the US for a while not that long ago and was vegetarian the whole time because of the disgusting, chemical tasting stringy meat. We do not want this.

@FangsForTheMemory

It's a dead cat, in journalism terms. You want to distract people from the real issue, fling a (proverbial) dead cat on the table. The royal family is the dead cat in this case.

If you watch out, any time there is seriously bad news, this government uses this distraction technique. I've got to the stage that whenever they do it, I think 'what are they distracting us from now?'

This.

Media management 101.
What big story can we bury the same day as the peasantry are united, distracted and outraged by something else.

@FrangipaniDeLaSqueegeeMop

What the BBC, a license payer funded service, allowed to happen to a vulnerable woman is absolutely despicable. This isn't some tabloid tittle tattle - it's a serious case of maltreatment and fraud. Aside from faking financial documents, she was led down a dangerous path of fear and paranoia, all to forward a journalist's career.

But hey shes just a woman so it couldn't possible be important I guess

You are making this all about one journalist and his ego, where as in fact Diana suffered abuse from across the tabloids and foreign press for years. The Dyson report says Diana wanted this interview and never saw the bank statements, they were presented to her brother as an intro to his sister.

But the bottom line here is the Royals didn't help her, just like they haven't supported Meghan, the main source of any paranoia was her husbands cheating.... conveniently forgotten.

As for the media, Sky is spending 13 minutes plus (still going on) about this story, its not just BBC.

We can have also end up with cheap American meat - stuffed full of hormones and antibiotics and intensively farmed with little regard for animal welfare. It’s a shame so many farming communities voted for it

UK as a whole voted for Brexit, then at two following GE's elected very pro hard brexit supporting governments, the last one by a significant margin.
The Cons are streets ahead in the polls, the UK want brexit and everything that follows on from it.

Is it beef / meat both ways? I assume so. I can’t see that Aus will buy from here is that the intention

It’s very far when we have good product here so may not make much sense in reality

On relative news it’s not dead cat whatever just that royal stories are resurging with PP etc people want to read it so media puts it up, demand is there

Also just heard Prince William’s statement. The story is worth looking at in media

@Mandalay246

Besides, farming isn't good for the environment.

Surviving on cardboard and paper are you? What a ridiculous comment.

That doesn't change the fact that farming is bad for the environment.

I was listening to the usual farmers whinefest last night. Who cares.

That doesn't change the fact that farming is bad for the environment.

Where would you like to get your food from then? Would you prefer for there to be no farms and all the available land built on? Would that be better for the environment?

Living in a country which relies heavily on farming I find some of you have very strange views.

I think because:

• The farming issue isn’t surprising news at all, at least not to people who voted Remain.
• The Princess Diana story isn’t about her as such. It’s about appallingly dishonest behaviour (both in securing the interview and worse, the subsequent cover-up) by a taxpayer-funded broadcaster.

If you actually look at the proportion of farmers that voted for Brexit, it pretty much mirrors the national vote - something like 52-53% voted for it depending on which survey/exit poll you read. Fishermen were much more Brexit supporting, apparently over 90% said they voted for Brexit at the time. So I don't think you can say "farmers voted for brexit" the way you can say "fishermen voted for brexit".

That being said, the farmers that were actually for Brexit were very very noisy and visible, at least round here, with massive signs in fields, draped over gates and fencing, so I think that's where the misconception has arisen. I certainly didn't see any farmers for remain with signs and banners and stuff so I remember being surprised when the NFU endorsed remain, it seemed so apparently at odds with the views of their membership.

‘If you can’t sell your sheep, Derxa, you’ll have little choice but to sell up unless you’re a hobby farmer.’

‘Wow. Nasty.’

Flipping hell I wish I had your life if you think this is nasty. Some of the things said to me during my life would have you reaching for your fainting chair and smelling salts!

@Brokensharted

Because the farmers made their beds and are now being forced to lie in them.

One of the only positive sides of Brexit is watching the turkeys who voted for it realise Christmas has come.

But won't we all suffer? I want to be able to buy meat farmed in the UK that is free range.

That aside, I don't want any farmer to go out of business even if they did vote for Brexit. We need to produce as much of our own food as we can. not be increasingly reliant on imports.