To think BBC news is lost to us now - bloody Farage on this morning

[pinotnow]

Why is he being platformed yet again to repeat the surely libellous and undoubtedly inflammatory language about KS and JP spouting from Elon Musk. Saying it's free speech?! Just irresponsible and vile. Even the way he refers to the PM as Starmer is just so rude and disrespectful.

I'm a massive supporter of the BBC and the licence fee but the news branch has clearly been infested with Tory supporters in high places and it's just not what it was now.

It's reputation and standing is being shredded😓.

Can you quote what it was he said then?

Wes Streeting's reply (linked) is quite interesting. One effect of Farage/Musk here that I think is broadly a good thing is that it's pushing politicians to use clear, unambiguous language themselves instead of being wishy washy with euphemisms and platitudes.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/cly4j1gpd5yt

There are 5 Reform MPs. That is all.

I did try to find one but it would appear not.

That clearly hasn't happened, he is getting more powerful & influential by the day.

ALL political leaders should be given air time by the BBC and others, in proportion to their vote share.

Farage is given far more, starting with UKIP and Brexit but the main problem with the media is he is rarely challenged in the way say a Tory LD or Lab leader is.

The BBC regularly gets criticised for being too right wing AND too left wing which suggests to me it’s doing a pretty good job of being mostly balanced.

It is a socially liberal organisation, however — ie openly pro-gay rights, racial and religious equality, women’s rights etc — which was pretty representative of society / both main political parties up until maybe ten years ago. Unfortunately there has been a lurch to the right / “traditional values” within the Conservative Party, as well as parties like Reform (we can argue about why until the cows come home — and future PPE students will — but it’s some kind of combination of Brexit/Covid/Elon Musk/Russian interference/cost of living crisis/growing numbers of refugees and immigrants) so the BBC’s social liberalism is probably no longer an accurate reflection of the middle ground. Personally I find that very depressing and I’m glad they’re continuing to promote social liberalism but I can understand why people on the right would label it too left-wing. Equally I think many of us on the left underestimate how many people out there agree with eg Farage and therefore feel he’s getting disproportionate airtime when he represents, in our eyes, a “minority view” – sadly he doesn’t represent a minority view any more.

Farage has always been given too much air time

The reason being he ups the figures people tune in to agree or shout at the tv

I have for many years switched offf he was on Question Time a ridiculous amount of times before he was an MP or UKIP had minimal influence

the press and that includes the BBC have absolutely indulged him

The BBC is so left leaning and biased I refuse to watch it anymore!

Seems like journalists need to pin Farage down to acknowledging the Baroness Jay report exists and how is REFORM & Farage personally going to hold govt to account for recommendations that Jay report didn't implement? How is Farage going to ally with rest of Opposition to make changes happen to better protect vulnerable young people in future?

The narrative that Musk/Farage want to spin is that "nothing was done" which is grossly untrue, but it pleases their constituencies who enjoy mud slinging, to believe it's true.

Farage's actual (parliamentary) constituency is mostly old people who don't care about vulnerable working class or kids in care, of course.

I just watched that segment too and it made me uneasy, as it highlighted the Musk-Trump-Farage nexus, but I thought it was valuable for that very reason.

But I agree that his use of ‘Starmer’ or ‘Kier Starmer’ appeared offhand and disrespectful. ‘The Prime Minister’ is the correct form of reference.

All my Tory voting friends are adamant that the BBC is rotten to the core with Labour supporters and other "left wing" types.

One flatly refused to believe me when I told her some people view it as pro-Tory.

I'm broadly talking about figures in the media (Musk) not just politicians.

Spin, is trying to put the best possible take on a policy/ response to an issue. It shouldn't (but sometimes does) veer into make believe, at which point those saying it should be challenged with the facts (does not always happen/ happen as well as it should do!).

Disinformation uses logical fallacies, and outright false statements to inform a larger view (that you support/ want others to support). There are a range of techniques to do this. But examples are the deliberate spreading of COVID vaccine conspiracies, Russian bots spreading disinfo about Ukraine and NATO ahead of Putin's invasion (and afterwards).

There's some really useful resources from the Center for Information Resilience: https://www.info-res.org/

For how this is used macro-economically and globally, it's worth reading through the Russian Playbook / this comprehensive report on the Five Pillars of Russian Disinformation: https://www.state.gov/russias-pillars-of-disinformation-and-propaganda-report/

The techniques used by Russia are not just used by Russia. But by private individuals (usually with money/ business interests/ political interests) countries like China and Iran, by organised crime gangs... And by some smooth talking entrepreneurs and politicians.

Well worth reading.

I still think that the important lessons I was taught as far back as History GCSEs of analysing a source and their motivations/ what they gain is incredibly useful.

If this is a genuine comment, then surely the only logical conclusion of this thread is that the BBC is in fact impartial and people just don’t notice when a media platform is agreeing with them, they just notice when it isn’t.

It’s impossible that it has both a left and right wing bias to the extent people are refusing to watch/listen to it.

@BMW6 Im 63, and I can usually tell! Age isn't the relevant factor, and saying that politicians are all the same is not accurate.

So? You cannot call one person out for supposedly bad manners if you do the same things. It doesn't matter if they are an MP or an OAP or a bin man. Why should an MP be worthy of more consideration than another human being?

But, some speakers are deliberately using their platform to stir up hate and drive division. Using their time to spread disinformation.
You mean like those (mainly) Labour MPs spreading lies in Parliament about the Cass Report where even Cass has had to say "Hold on, that is the opposite of what is written in my report, have you actually read it yourself?"

This 👆

Oh dear, you are proving the points being made over and over and over about the left.

What are you frightened of if Nigel F does get to speak on the BBC? Do you think he is going to hypnotise the masses, or is it that you you have a superior understanding of life that the poor stupid masses can't comprehend?

Honesty think about what you are asking for.

They have spent 100,000s burying the Balen report. They are not neutral and do a lot of damage. I don't support the BBC at all.

Where’s the line between political difference and hate though, that’s the problem? And who decides? You might say that Starmer’s, sorry, the PM’s selective application of VAT to education is a political statement But others could see it as ideological hatred of those who want to buy a better education for their children. I exaggerate to make a point, but one persons political difference is another’s hate.

As the BBC gets similar amounts of flack from the left and the right it’s probably treading the right line!

I am fine with him having media coverage but it should be in line with how well his party did.

I should be hearing more from the Lib Dem and as much from the Green Party leaders but I am not.

People who think the Beeb has a left / liberal bias are loons.

It's exactly this.

They're scared for neutral people to consider he might actually have a point...

@Longtalljosie that's really interesting thank you.
I did read closer to the time years ago about the care home failings and details like, cheaper land/moved away from networks.

Did the report cover no go areas though and the culture of the time like missives going out claiming these girls had made lifestyle choices.

Because Nigel Farage is an MP. And he is talking about another MP.

There are (rightly) different expectations of behaviour for our elected officials. If he did this in the Commons he would be censured by the Speaker for unparliamentary language.

Oh yes, thanks!

YABU I hate Farage and what he stands for but the BBC is neutral and should remain so, i believe this is very important! Neutral means sometimes listening to the other side.
I don't want to end up like America with a Fox News/CNN style system