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Original poster

"The Daily Mail largely drives the broadcasting and political agenda in this country" - does it?

56 replies

croftscrumpty · 05/09/2009 10:42

Surely this is just the Daily Mail's own propaganda?

I know bringing up kids has turned my brains to mush, but I can't believe this has become the case while my back was turned.

H-e-e-e-e-l-l-l-p...

OP posts:
Original poster
croftscrumpty · 05/09/2009 16:18

Scary though. The PM's personal friendship drives the country's political agenda? He probably WOULD like Simon Cowell in his tent.

OP posts:
kathyis6incheshigh · 05/09/2009 16:22

Nancy

Nancy66 · 05/09/2009 16:29

I'm not suggesting they're lovers or anything! I'm just saying they are friends and the two families socialise....

www.guardian.co.uk/media/2008/nov/09/paul-dacre-daily-mail

Original poster
croftscrumpty · 05/09/2009 16:38

Dacre's probably the only person who's prepared to be friends with the sad old git. At least they've got misogyny in common, according to that link. Which makes me want to die btw.

OP posts:
kathyis6incheshigh · 05/09/2009 16:41

PMSL @ Dacre recoiling in horror at Cherie Blair breastfeeding Leo at the dinner table!

cherryblossoms · 05/09/2009 16:46

Is the importance of the DM something to do with representing the "swing voter"-type persons?

(Surprised, really, because I always thought it was the Sun that political parties were depserate to be chummy with).

Original poster
croftscrumpty · 05/09/2009 16:48

Are you sure you're not suggesting a whiff of homoeroticism, Nancy? All that misogyny, fermenting away in their fevered little brains? What's that about, then?

OP posts:
Nancy66 · 05/09/2009 16:54

Well there's been rumours about GB for a long time - never heard any about PD though.

policywonk · 05/09/2009 17:33

Cherry, I think the thing about Mail readers is that they are EXTREMELY likely to vote. They are also likely to take part in other low-level political activity like writing to MPs, lobbying councillors, complaining to Ofcom, etc etc.

Guardian readers are very likely to do this sort of thing too, of course, but there aren't nearly so many of us.

Mail also has an unusually high number of woman readers I think, and the female vote is always sought after by politicians (because women are, again, much more likely to vote, and because they will often talk to other people about how they intend to vote). There's a substantial crossover between the average female DM reader and Worcester Woman, I'd guess. And Worcester Women decide elections.

cherryblossoms · 05/09/2009 17:43

Many thanks, PW.

CatherineofMumbles · 05/09/2009 17:52

Tsar - you are right! What is this obsession that MN has with the DM? What is hilarious is that there are so many on here spitting foam about the DM, (ho do they know ehat in it hen they profess not to read it...) but the DM clearly sees MN as its natural constitiency, and presume if they haven't already, they are gearing up to make an offer to Justine - if they do buy MN what sport that will be to watch, tee, hee!

seekinginspiration · 05/09/2009 17:57

Agghh!! and fantastic: all at the same time. I feel the need to comment on the DM, the Sun and the BBC and went looking for supporters Versus opponents following the original question and found one person had opposite views on the same:

IdontMN2makecopyforlazyjo... Sat 05-Sep-09 10:50:09
croftscrumpty
IdontMN2makecopyforlazyjo..
TsarChasm so good to to chat...... debate and disagree.. thank god for MN ..Mums Net(feel the need to write in full.
Seeking inspiration and sometimes ... finding it.

kathyis6incheshigh · 05/09/2009 18:07

Policy that's very very interesting.

IdontMN2makecopyforlazyjournos · 05/09/2009 18:14

"I feel the need to comment on the DM, the Sun and the BBC and went looking for supporters Versus opponents following the original question and found one person had opposite views on the same"

I'm sorry, what? What does that mean?

Could you explain what all that cut and pasting of my posting name is for?

StripeySuit · 05/09/2009 18:16

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

policywonk · 05/09/2009 18:26

Thanks Kathy

The Mail's coverage of the Lawrence case was indeed interesting. I read somewhere that Dacre took a personal interest in it and the front page 'Murderers' (? was it?) thing was his idea. Basically, Dacre saw the Lawrences as a respectable, aspirational, culturally British middle-class family whose lives had been ruined by criminal low-lifes - standard DM constituency. Ethnicity didn't really come into it in his eyes, I think (except that the murderers obviously had a racist motivation). Whereas the anti-immigrant campaigns seem to be motivated by a combination of xenophobia and cultural protectionism.

policywonk · 05/09/2009 18:29

Oh, and Neville Lawrence had done some work on Dacre's house too, so PD knew the family personally.

cherryblossoms · 05/09/2009 18:55

PW -

(or anyone else, it's just that I suspect PW may know this)

  • how is The Mail doing with its online service? Is there any way of knowing how popular it is in relation to other online newspapers?

(I ask because it's presence here on mn is quite striking.)

policywonk · 05/09/2009 19:28

Actually I DO know this because I came across it when I was Googling for the links below - it's usually neck-and-neck with the Times (I think) for 2nd/3rd place (behind the Guardian? Not sure actually), but the most recent figures show that it was the most visited site during June. Apparently the vast majority are from overseas. Why, I really have no idea - you'd have thought that if any UK paper was peculiarly British, it's the Mail.

cherryblossoms · 05/09/2009 19:31

PW - I knew you'd know! Thank you.

kathyis6incheshigh · 05/09/2009 19:32

A lot of the comments are often from expats who just love agreeing with the 'Britain is going to hell in a handcart' stories and love the paper no doubt because it is peculiarly British - could it be they rather than foreigners who account for the traffic from overseas?

policywonk · 05/09/2009 19:38

No problem cherry - if only my ability to regurgitate half-remembered Guardian articles were more generally useful

Good point Kathy, that could be the explanation. Lots of people on the Costa del Sol trying to work out whether now would be the best time to come back and start making enormous claims on NHS resources...

Nancy66 · 05/09/2009 19:40

The Mail online has 30million unique users a day - they've ploughed a small fortune into the website. Setting aside your political leanings and hatred of the Mail (!) you have to admit it's a very good and user friendly website.

The Sun's website is awful - really hard to navigate and with huge floating ads that you have to chase all over the screen to get rid of.

Mail online is deliberately targetting an overseas and youth market - that's why they feature loads of showbiz stories including names like Kerry Katona etc, who would never be featured in the print edition - which is still firmly aimed at the old school Mail readership.

cherryblossoms · 05/09/2009 19:44

... and thank you Nancy.

You are an informative bunch.

LovelyTinOfSpam · 05/09/2009 19:45

haven't read it all but seemed a good time to post my overheard conversation in smiths the other day.

elderly lady to assistant: what is your best selling newspaper?
assistant: the daily mail
lady: really?
assistant: oh yes by miles

old lady smiles and hands over her daily mail to pay for it.

So there you go