Meet the Other Phone. A phone that grows with your child.

Meet the Other Phone.
A phone that grows with your child.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

To think this what the Russel Brand story is meant to bury?

519 replies

madamreign · 19/09/2023 06:58

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-66839314

It's not half as salacious, possibly a bit dry and dull to most people.

But it's fucking constitutional dynamite

OP posts:
Thread gallery
7
madamreign · 19/09/2023 08:10

People think I posted this in support of the nasty, pervy, non-entity that is Brand???

Right.

Now I've publicly condemned the little weasel, can we get on with the topic?

OP posts:
RoseAndRose · 19/09/2023 08:11

Nevermind202020 · 19/09/2023 07:45

The RB situation isn't meant to bury anything, it's an attempt to expose him for who he seems to really be. His cult following won't accept that though. Not everything is set up to hide something else.

Because "burying bad news" works the other way round.

It's when there's a huge story, that takes over almost completely, so your (unpalatable) story gets no attention.

It was first said on 9/11 by Jo Moore (then a special adviser) who send round a memo stating it was now a very good day to get out anything we want to bury. Councillors expenses?

justasking111 · 19/09/2023 08:11

Governments, come and go. The civil service remains. They hold the true reins of power not politicians. Cummings and co rattled their cage for a time but things have settled down again.

EasternStandard · 19/09/2023 08:11

madamreign · 19/09/2023 08:10

People think I posted this in support of the nasty, pervy, non-entity that is Brand???

Right.

Now I've publicly condemned the little weasel, can we get on with the topic?

It shouldn’t be a blip on page 8

It’s Brand and all those who facilitated it - which is many

PenhillDarkMonarch · 19/09/2023 08:11

The problem with timing the RB documentary is: for several years almost every week reveals some shit show about the current government - something so bad I cannot believe we've sunk to this.

Just when where C4 meant to show this documentary that would not appear to be covering something up? When has there been a free week that has not involved some story it is easy to imagine the government would like to bury?

bookworm14 · 19/09/2023 08:13

The level of generalised paranoia in our society has really rocketed since covid and this thread is a classic example.

The Brand story has come out now because it will have taken them this long to get it past their lawyers. That’s it. It has absolutely fuck-all to do with ‘covering up’ anything. There would be no need to cover up the Johnson story anyway - he’s no longer prime minister and everyone already knows he’s an amoral shyster who shouldn’t have been anywhere near the role. The current government would have no reason to bury the story - if anything Sunak would want it publicised as he doesn’t want Johnson trying to make a comeback. Murdoch doesn’t care about Johnson anymore either - he always likes to back the winner so will probably pivot towards Labour before the next election.

Please just try and think logically before turning everything into a conspiracy theory.

Wherly · 19/09/2023 08:14

madamreign · 19/09/2023 08:10

People think I posted this in support of the nasty, pervy, non-entity that is Brand???

Right.

Now I've publicly condemned the little weasel, can we get on with the topic?

Yes. Can you clarify who it is that orchestrated this distraction?

Can you also explain your rationale a little bit more? I don't understand how the RB story saved BJ. The theory seems to rely on the logic that there are people who care enough about the BJ story that it would have caused huge problems but these same people were immediately distracted by RB and now don't care at all about BJ. Is that correct or am I missing something?

Blinkingbonkers · 19/09/2023 08:15

Personally I wouldn’t argue that there may be some truth to the RB allegations….however, was the story purposefully dropped at a time to distract from other things? Absolutely. I’m more worried that people don’t realise this is the power wielded by the media.

IClaudine · 19/09/2023 08:16

madamreign · 19/09/2023 08:10

People think I posted this in support of the nasty, pervy, non-entity that is Brand???

Right.

Now I've publicly condemned the little weasel, can we get on with the topic?

Well, I think your question has been answered. Most people don't think the RB revelations were designed to bury anything.

CaveMum · 19/09/2023 08:16

Can I recommend to some posters on this thread the book “The Irrational Ape”. An excellent book on the art of critical thinking and how to avoid being taken in by conspiracy theories 😜

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Irrational-Ape-Disinformation-Conspiracy-Propaganda/dp/1471178285

djoanna006 · 19/09/2023 08:17

Russell brand story: "BBC chauffeur to pick up a teenage girl from school for Russell Brand!" - he used BBC car, BBC chauffeur, all funded by the public and abused his power as a public figure/well-known comedian to lure teenage girls. Not a big story for you?

Angrycat2768 · 19/09/2023 08:18

I mean, why is this story dynamite? The Palace was asked to intervene in Boris Johnsons behaviour? The story about his behaviour is already out there. The RB story has been investigated for 4 years. Surely they should have told them to release it before the original report was released. What does this tell us? That the monarchy has no power over Parliament? We've known that since 1689, but certainly since Boris and Rees Mogg tried to prologue Parliament. Or was it it say 'Oh even our poor dead Queen was upset by Boris' ? It's an add on to an existing story. Saying that the RB investigation is covering up for a story is minimising what he is alleged to have done. The only establishment cover up is that which was going on at Channel 4, Endemol and the BBC to cover up Brands behaviour over decades, and whether they and other media organisations and talent agencies ( because Brands, and Schofields reps are also implicated) are still doing it.

IClaudine · 19/09/2023 08:18

Blinkingbonkers · 19/09/2023 08:15

Personally I wouldn’t argue that there may be some truth to the RB allegations….however, was the story purposefully dropped at a time to distract from other things? Absolutely. I’m more worried that people don’t realise this is the power wielded by the media.

It is the other way around. The government might take the opportunity to bury bad news when a big story hits. No big mystery there.

HangingByYourFingernails · 19/09/2023 08:18

RoseAndRose · 19/09/2023 08:11

Because "burying bad news" works the other way round.

It's when there's a huge story, that takes over almost completely, so your (unpalatable) story gets no attention.

It was first said on 9/11 by Jo Moore (then a special adviser) who send round a memo stating it was now a very good day to get out anything we want to bury. Councillors expenses?

That happens all the time, but it happens when the government is releasing information at its own pace, without prior notice, that was inevitably going to have to be released anyway so you might as well do it while people are looking the other way.

None of that applies to the BJ story, which is gossip that's included in part 2 of a documentary series.

Wherly · 19/09/2023 08:18

Blinkingbonkers · 19/09/2023 08:15

Personally I wouldn’t argue that there may be some truth to the RB allegations….however, was the story purposefully dropped at a time to distract from other things? Absolutely. I’m more worried that people don’t realise this is the power wielded by the media.

Distract from what? Other things reported by.... the media? Is there good media and bad media?

YokoOnosBigHat · 19/09/2023 08:18

I'd be much less suspicious about this whole RB furore if a Murdoch paper wasn't involved. That has my spidey senses tingling. A different broadsheet newspaper and I might be thinking differently.

IncomingTraffic · 19/09/2023 08:19

madamreign · 19/09/2023 08:10

People think I posted this in support of the nasty, pervy, non-entity that is Brand???

Right.

Now I've publicly condemned the little weasel, can we get on with the topic?

There are ways to raise the Johnson issue without feeding into Brand’s PR ‘they’re out to get me to cover up things they don’t want to know’ story.

That is bullshit. At most the Brand story is just a convenient thing - but it could be anything else that currently has a lot of public attention. It’s not something cunningly brought to the public’s attention to hide a real or worse scandal.

That idea is really problematic - and it’s the narrative Brand wants everyone to take up.

We know the government tries to take advantage of things to release stuff that’s a bit embarrassing or likely to be problematic. It doesn’t usually work that well. And we all knew that Boris was an arsehole. It’s not some hidden constitutional crisis - there have been stories about this stuff for months.

Secondwindplease · 19/09/2023 08:20

I wonder OP, did you sit there every day of the last batshit fucking crazy ten years, through brexit and covid and Ukraine, and say ‘hmmm, I wonder if this is to distract us from the fact that Russell Brand is allegedly a rapist?’.

Honestly, I do hate when people see conspiracy in everything. It is such a pitiful conceit on the part of the conspiracist, to believe that they are uniquely able to spot the glitch in the matrix or whatever, when in reality they have such limited capacity to reckon with the mundanity of how society actually works and the interplays between various institutions.

IClaudine · 19/09/2023 08:20

YokoOnosBigHat · 19/09/2023 08:18

I'd be much less suspicious about this whole RB furore if a Murdoch paper wasn't involved. That has my spidey senses tingling. A different broadsheet newspaper and I might be thinking differently.

And what about Channel 4? Not part of Murdoch's empire.

bookworm14 · 19/09/2023 08:21

Honestly, I do hate when people see conspiracy in everything. It is such a pitiful conceit on the part of the conspiracist, to believe that they are uniquely able to spot the glitch in the matrix or whatever, when in reality they have such limited capacity to reckon with the mundanity of how society actually works and the interplays between various institutions.

This. It’s such a self-centred world view.

Ginmonkeyagain · 19/09/2023 08:21

Boris Johnson is a busted flush. He has no power anymore. No one is interested in covering up how shit he is. I mean even people who support him openly admit he is shit.

On the BBC cars thing, it used to be really easy to get a BBC car. I am very lowly but used to have a job that required me to do Saturday morning news programmes on occasion. If it was early I always used to ask for a BBC car to pick me up.

boozeclues · 19/09/2023 08:21
Office Boss GIF

100%

Some small brain energy on this thread.

Drug user and prolific womaniser gets accused of rape = government conspiracy and cover up of the real “facts”

What a load of bollocks

Puncturedbicycle85 · 19/09/2023 08:21

As if anyone would have given much of a crap if the BJ story was the leading one though. It’s not like the queen actually did intervene or that she was even asked to. The officials “considered” asking her to do so which would have been unprecedented in recent years but they never actually did. Plus the story did run on all the main outlets and nobody cared much. I don’t think the RB story is a conspiracy at all.

Inkpotlover · 19/09/2023 08:23

Blinkingbonkers · 19/09/2023 08:15

Personally I wouldn’t argue that there may be some truth to the RB allegations….however, was the story purposefully dropped at a time to distract from other things? Absolutely. I’m more worried that people don’t realise this is the power wielded by the media.

If you knew anything about the media, which you clearly don’t, you would know Murdoch hates the BBC and wants to destroy it so his newspapers - i.e. The Times and Sunday Times - would absolutely and categorically never work with the BBC to time the release of two stories so one would cancel out the other. He just wouldn’t let that happen.

Plus, if you knew anything about politics, which you clearly don’t, you’d know Murdoch stopped backing Johnson months ago. He wouldn’t care about a story knocking him now because he has no interest in him as a political figure, much less want him reinstated as PM.

I worked in the media for 25+ years. This conspiracy theory shit is frightening.

Swipe left for the next trending thread