Abracadabrah

I create as I speak

Shocked, shocked to find anti-Americanism here!

Tony Blair was shocked by the BBC's coverage of Hurricane Katrina's devastation of New Orleans, describing it as “full of hatred of America”, Rupert Murdoch, chairman and chief executive of News Corporation, revealed on Friday night.

Mr Murdoch, a long-time critic of the BBC who controls rival Sky News, said the prime minister had recounted his feelings in a private conversation earlier this week in New York.

So let's see, one of Britain's canniest politicians reveals to Rupert Murdoch media mogul, that he was shocked by the BBC. And Murdoch reveals this to the public at large.

Gee, do you think that Tony planted that nugget to let his feelings be known publicly on the matter? Not that the BBC will care. In fact, they'll probably commend themselves for hitting the mark.

Still it's reassuring for those of us who have thought this for years that the leader of Britain feels similarly.

Heh, the familiar British hatchet men are already out claiming that Blair is Murdoch's poodle.

Martin Bell, the former BBC war correspondent and former MP.

Bell said: 'Assuming it's accurate - it may of course be that Tony Blair was simply telling Rupert Murdoch what he thought he wanted to hear.

Uh, huh. Because the one thing that is clear lo! these four past years is that Blair has no spine!

Charles Wheeler, the veteran former US correspondent for the BBC, commented brilliantly:

Matt Frei was very good. He got quite angry, which is what might have annoyed people.

'I don't see why people should be unemotional; I never was. You have to tell people what you feel and what you hate - that's part of legitimate reporting.'

Well in that case, why bother to turn on the news? We already what what you feel and what you hate. You feel that you hate President Bush.

And here's a surprise. A Scotsman editorial calling the BBC on its bias:

But it is the BBC that deserves to have a red face, because Blair's strictures are quite right. The corporation's coverage of New Orleans was an anti-American hatefest. The tone was gloating: distrust of the Bush administration in particular now colours BBC reports to the point of caricature.

During recent decades the BBC has drifted into political bias to a degree that makes its licence-supported status as a "public-service broadcaster" a mockery. Alongside some excellent programming exists a mind-set almost always slanted leftwards.

posted by Alcibiades @ 9:42 PM