There's a lively Twitter debate going on over the question of free speech following the mob attack on Douglas Carswell MP the other day. A local BBC news programme chose to do its 'BBC impartiality' thing and invite on someone from the baying mob:
On look east (East edition) at 2230 the other side of the story. We speak to one of the protestors who confronted @DouglasCarswell
— Andrew Sinclair (@andrewpolitics) May 28, 2015
[Update: I've deleted most of the tweets featured here, given that they turn out to be unfair to Andrew Sinclair - though I'll leave this one for the record, given that this is the source of the accusations against his editorial judgement]:
@JamesDwan on a different note, I'm not sure people can have much confidence in the editorial judgement of @andrewpolitics and @BBCLookEast
— Douglas Carswell MP (@DouglasCarswell) May 28, 2015
Update: Andrew Sinclair has been in touch to point out that he didn't take part in the coverage of this story and played no part in the decision to interview the protestor, so it is wrong to say that the fact that Look East ran the story should reflect on his editorial judgement.
He was actually working on another programme at the time and was informed out of courtesy that the story was being run.
The fact that he tweeted about it and later expressed an opinion about the interview is very different to making an editorial judgement.
He was actually working on another programme at the time and was informed out of courtesy that the story was being run.
The fact that he tweeted about it and later expressed an opinion about the interview is very different to making an editorial judgement.
Has Andrew Sinclair responded, or in this case has the BBC's finest decided that comments, from them, at least, are closed?
ReplyDeleteBe funny if he blocked an MP, as BBC twitterers are prone to do to mere mortals who put them in an unhappy place.
He did reply - with a one-off tweet:
Delete"Personally I see nothing wrong with giving other people's point of view. I call it free speech and leave the audience to make up their minds".
https://twitter.com/andrewpolitics/status/604040303918596096
I think he may have missed the point.
Oh, dear. So much for the BBC not required to give air time to "opponents of the consensus." If it weren't for double standards, the BBC would have no standards at all.
DeleteSeems he is replying in staged doses. Not sure such pauses are helping clarity much.
DeleteHe was quite correct to stick up for himself though. People had wrongly assumed that he was involved in the 'Look East' decision.
DeleteDid the idiot Beeboid bother telling the violent thug that Carswell isn't a Tory and isn't be involved in their austerity plans?
ReplyDeleteOkay, so it was another Beeboid who showed poor judgment, not Sinclair. My question above still stands.
ReplyDelete