At the start of last night's Newsnight, Emily Maitlis (above) provided a textbook example of the dark art of skewing someone's words to cast them in the worst possible light (see pictorial equivalent, above).
The 'someone' being skewed just happened to be the leader of UKIP.
The 'someone' being skewed just happened to be the leader of UKIP.
During his Evan Davis interview on BBC One, Nigel Farage said that he had used rhetoric on issues like immigration to "wake people up":
Sometimes you have to say things in a way to get noticed, of that there's no question.
In order to get the public aware of some of these issues perhaps at time that tone had to be used. But you are not you are not hearing, and you're interviewing me now as we approach a general election, you are not hearing that tone from me.
Here, however, is how Emily skewed his words last night:
He admitted to Evan Davis that he had used 'a tone' to attack some immigrants which was designed to 'get noticed' but insisted it had been necessary.
That makes Nigel sound very nasty and shifty, doesn't it?
It isn't what he actually said, but what the heck? Eh, Newsnight?
As they say on Twitter, #bbcbias.
It isn't what he actually said, but what the heck? Eh, Newsnight?
As they say on Twitter, #bbcbias.
If nothing else, this is proof that narratives do spread - somehow, mysteriously - from one department of the BBC to another. Stage Performer Maitlis and her editor picked up Davis' "tone" narrative and ran with it. All on their own initiative, I'm sure. No need for a conspiracy because they're all already dedicated to destroying Farage.
ReplyDeleteWell said. The exhibitionist Maitlis with a new gimicky buzz word to drive us even further away from the Bebe. It's presenter-itis (they call themselves "journalists" but no respectable journal would have them. They are talking to themselves. Listening to Today just now (I never learn), the average listener wouldn't know that there are many Americans who admire Farrage, but the programme has to invite some New York leftie on to deride Ukip unchallenged. By the way, with respect, "narrative" is another overused buzz word.
DeleteYep. They're all on the same dinner party circuit and they have a group-think approach to this.
ReplyDeleteUKIP are beginning to learn to challenge the assumptions made by the BBC folk. They should do that much more. Farage picking up on Davis's use of "hate" was good - it flustered Davis. The same with the protest about the biased BBC audience for the debate.