Following on from Sue's post...
Dominic Sambrook isn't the only "populist BBC historian" who's been sounding off about the Balfour Declaration this week. So has Dan (Son of Peter) Snow:
Many on Twitter understandably felt that this was a heavily loaded and nuance-free take on history (and it's hard to disagree with them over that).
And Dan has form. The (late) BBC Trust ruled against him in 2013 on grounds of 'inaccuracy' for falsely implying that Israel started the Six Day War.
That confirms what I always suspected - that Dan Snow is not the sharpest tool in the box.
ReplyDeleteWe "gave" Kashmir to the Indians. The Russians "gave" Alaskans to the USA. Kruschev "gave" Crimea to Ukraine. Stalin "gave" a hefty portion of Prussia to Poland. I could go on and on...these things happen in history. Why is Dan Snow getting worked up about this one example?
Dan is tall. Dan is dashing. Dan's dad was respected once.
DeleteThey both have access to whizzy graphics.
Dan married well too, yah?
Not much to do with impartial history. A lot to do with BBC nepotism and ideology.
Mental.
This is what television does. It elevates mediocrities like Dan Snow to positions of influence with little or no real qualification other than being presentable…and having a well-known father. Now who else does that remind me of?
ReplyDeleteThat reminds me of two, not just one! :)
DeleteYes, quite.
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