"Acute EU Dissatisfaction Syndrome"

There was an interesting exchange a couple of days ago on Today between John Humphrys and the BBC's Europe editor, Katya Adler.

Others have commented on this, but I'd just like to add a few thoughts of my own - and a full transcription.

Let's start with the transcription: 

John Humphrys: Let me turn to our Europe editor, Katya Adler, who is also in Athens. And Katya, it was interesting that Mr Vemicos chose to talk about 70 years of the European Union bringing peace to the continent; in other words, talking in terms that seems to acknowledge, as a number of people do now, don't they, that this is about more than just Greece? It's about more even than the euro. It is about the future of the European Union.

Katya Adler: Absolutely, and here where you are in Greece I agree completely. Nicolas Vermicos said that you don't have a sense of panic here. Everybody realises this is a momentous time in the history of their country and, of course, for individual families as well. But not just key times for Greece and the Greek people but also for the Eurozone. And also the old political order of Europe, I think. I mean, what we have at the moment in Europe are two powerful political currents colliding and clashing. I mean, on the one hand you've got the traditional powers that be - the bankers, big business, the traditional parties imposing their will from above; and on the other you've got grassroots movements, people-driven, saying 'no' to the status quo with an alternative vision of society, like we see in Spain, Italy and France. I mean, here those two keys roles are played by Greece's creditors on the one hand and then Syriza and its supporters on the other. And not only do we not know what's going to happen to Greece and the Eurozone but we do not know what's going to happen to the political order of Europe. Angela Merkel says, again yesterday, if the euro fails Europe fails. But what Europe is she talking about?

John Humphrys: Well, and that's the point, isn't it? Whether this disaffection - which is a word I know you've used yourself in the past - is something that is now effecting - infecting indeed - the whole continent?

Katya Adler: Well, absolutely. And things could be changing fast. We've got a general election in Spain at the end of the year. You've got far-left grassroots movements that look towards Syriza there. They've been marching on the streets of Madrid in support of Syriza throughout the whole process and all of that's being stepped up as the emotions start spinning here in Greece in the lead-up to the referendum. This is something that people feel emotionally across the continent. Actually, interestingly, it actually marries in with what's happening in the UK as well. I mean, you've got...I call it 'Acute EU Dissatisfaction Syndrome'. We've got high unemployment, sluggish growth - if any, deteriorating quality of life for the majority, while the minority - super-affluent - continue to profit. So pretty much everybody across Europe now is, at some level or another, calling for change. We have it here with the Greek prime minister. We have it in the UK with David Cameron. But, of course, their respective vision for a new dawn for Europe is quite, quite different.

Regarding Katya's first answer, I'd say that this is a line of argument that many (from UKIP to Syriza) would share and it doesn't seem to me to be essentially untrue. Election after election seems to be showing Eurosceptic/anti-establishment parties from the Right and the Left hoovering up votes at the moment. The old political order - though still resilient in many places - is being harried from all sides. [Katya cites Spain (the Left), France (the Right) and Italy (er...the...whatever Beppe's party is), but there are many others]. 

Her way of describing that, however...

...the traditional powers that be - the bankers, big business, the traditional parties imposing their will from above [versus] grassroots movements, people-driven, saying 'no' to the status quo with an alternative vision of society

...undoubtedly employs the language of the Left rather than the Right, doesn't it? 

Surely only someone whose own personal views lie on the Left rather than the Right would chose such language here? 

Regarding her second answer, I've read claims that Katya's statement that "it actually marries in with what's happening in the UK as well" relates to the bit where she says "We've got high unemployment, sluggish growth - if any, deteriorating quality of life for the majority, while the minority - super-affluent - continue to profit". 

I'm not so sure about that. To make such a bold - and false - statement about the UK would be a seriously biased thing for a BBC reporter to say, and a major political storm would surely pretty much inevitably ensue. 

And if Katya did mean the UK when she said that bit, she'd surely already be in deep trouble with the Telegraph, Times, Mail, Spectator, Breitbart (etc). 

Remember what she said:

I think that she's only relating the UK to the rest of Europe with regards to British Euroscepticism: Actually, interestingly, it actually marries in with what's happening in the UK as well. I mean, you've got...I call it 'Acute EU Dissatisfaction Syndrome'. 

She says "you've got" when she talks about us here in the UK. She then says "We've got" when she talks about "high unemployment, sluggish growth" (etc), so I think she's talking (generally) about people on "the continent" there, not about us in the UK. 

It is ambiguous, but the context seems to me to clinch the matter. 

It would have made for a lovely 'gotcha!', this, but I don't think it is a 'gotcha!'

However, in clearing Katya Adler of traducing the UK (and the UK's former Tory-led/now Tory government) here...

...it has to be noted that her "you" and "we" seems to suggest where her personal centre of gravity appears to lie...

...and here, I think, lies the real 'gotcha!' from this interview when it comes to BBC bias...

As Alan at Biased BBC notes, Katya Adler has been criticised by Eurosceptic MPs and the Eurosceptic media for being far too close to the EU, hosting events for the European Commission and the EU presidency. That would be fine if it didn't influence her reporting, but...

...when she talks of Euroscepticism and pointedly includes UK Euroscepticism as some form of disease - which she mockingly names "Acute EU Dissatisfaction Syndrome" - then, I'm afraid, I think her pro-EU bias is showing. Strongly.

And her talk of people feeling Eurosceptism "emotionally" is another telling remark. When BBC reporters start talking about people feeling "emotional" (or "angry") then you can usually tell (pace the U.S. Tea Party movement) that the BBC reporter thinks that their arguments lack a certain logical credibility. 

Add that to John Humphrys's (of 'house-and-family-in-Greece' fame) describing that same Eurosceptic feeling as an "infection", then this is surely yet more evidence of clear pro-EU bias on the part of the BBC.