Call them 'conspiratorial', but some people feel that the whole row between the BBC and David Cameron over what to call Islamic State is too good to be true (for both sides) - especially given that the BBC pioneered the way when it came to calling IS "so-called Islamic State" and has even outstripped most politicians when it comes to vigorously projected the message that IS has nothing to do with true Islam.
Suspicions therefore followed of a possible collusion between the BBC and the government (a fake row designed to reinforce a socially cohesive message that won't hurt the feelings of British Muslims).
Sometimes it's very hard not to think like that. Take today's Feedback, for example. This also discussed the issue of the BBC's use of language, but this time over the issue of immigration.
Two out of the three featured listener emails/calls featured listeners complaining that the BBC was taking the tabloid route of using words like "swamping" to describe the 'migrants' at Calais, and taking John Humphrys to task for saying "so-called genuine asylum seekers" on Today last week. [It's not been JH's week, has it? And it's mostly been over the term "so-called"!]
Then came an interviewer with a third complainant (from the pro-immigration side) - Professor Richard Rudin of Liverpool John Moores University.
Prof. Rudin was unhappy with the BBC for using the phrase "illegal immigrants". He says that phrase should never be used. Never. He calls it "toxic", and blamed John Humphrys (again) for using the world "illegal" this week. Prof. Rudin always wants them to be referred to as "migrants" by the BBC.
And here's where conspiratorial thoughts arise because the BBC has pioneered the way in tending (very heavily) towards using the word "migrants" rather than "immigrants" - and in using the word "illegal" very sparingly.
The BBC has already travelled most of the way that Prof. Rudin wants them to travel...
...and, I suspect, many at the BBC (if not necessarily John Humphrys) would be all too happy to go the whole hog and do what Prof. Rudin wants them to do - impose a prohibition on the term "illegal immigrant".
Too good to be true (for some at the BBC)?
Too good to be true (for some at the BBC)?
Roger Bolton mentioned that Prof. Rudin is a professor of journalism and that he used to help refugees settle in the UK. He didn't mention that Richard Rudin used to work for the BBC, where (as his LinkedIn profile states) he "held senior editorial, management and presentation posts". (Wonder if he had any involvement in shaping the BBC's reporting of immigration?)
John Humphrys, of course, famously noted that the BBC had a liberal bias on the topic of immigration. (Roger Bolton wasn't best pleased about his saying so publicly either). Wonder what he'll make of this edition of Feedback?
