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2019-12-18 Britain
Boris Johnson threatens BBC with two-pronged attack
h/t Instapundit
[The Guardian] Downing Street is threatening the future of the BBC by insisting it is seriously considering decriminalising non-payment of the licence fee, while boycotting Radio 4’s Today programme over the broadcaster’s supposed anti-Tory bias.

No 10 pulled ministers from Saturday’s edition of the Today programme and sources said it intended to "withdraw engagement" from the show in future.

The row is seen as an ominous sign of Boris Johnson’s willingness to bypass independent scrutiny and follows criticism of the BBC’s election coverage from both left and right.

No 10 pointed to Andrew Neil’s on-air monologue in which he lambasted Johnson for his refusal to be interviewed, and the BBC’s "extensive coverage" of a four-year-old boy with suspected pneumonia forced to sleep on a hospital floor ‐ as supposed evidence of anti-Tory, pro-remain bias at the corporation.

Meanwhile, Labour backers have raised concerns about the BBC’s coverage, from the editing out of laughter aimed at Johnson in a news bulletin to leading reporters uncritically repeating Conservative sources, and the prime minister escaping scrutiny after dodging the one-on-one interview with Neil.

The BBC has firmly rejected such criticism. In an email on Friday, the director general, Tony Hall, wrote: "In a frenetic campaign where we’ve produced hundreds of hours of output, of course we’ve made the odd mistake and we’ve held up our hands to them. Editors are making tough calls every minute of the day. But I don’t accept the view of those critics who jump on a handful of examples to suggest we’re somehow biased one way or the other."
Posted by g(r)omgoru 2019-12-18 02:04|| || Front Page|| [11144 views ]  Top

#1 Very astute.
Posted by Dron66046 2019-12-18 06:13||   2019-12-18 06:13|| Front Page Top

#2 Extortion funded indoctrination is an abomination.

The BBC claims it's really good, but needs to force people to pay for it...

If it's as good as they say people will willingly pay for its goods.
Posted by Bright Pebbles 2019-12-18 07:00||   2019-12-18 07:00|| Front Page Top

#3 BBC the Obamacare of the media.
Posted by Procopius2k 2019-12-18 07:09||   2019-12-18 07:09|| Front Page Top

#4 seriously considering decriminalising non-payment of the licence fee

Eliminate the fee and charge the BBC rent for using the government's air waves. Better yet, auction off that spectrum to the highest bidder.
Posted by Elmereger Clavins7805 2019-12-18 08:14||   2019-12-18 08:14|| Front Page Top

#5 ^No, it's Pravda.
Posted by g(r)omgoru 2019-12-18 08:14||   2019-12-18 08:14|| Front Page Top

#6 #3
Posted by g(r)omgoru 2019-12-18 08:15||   2019-12-18 08:15|| Front Page Top

#7 BBC has long past served its purpose. Eliminate the fee, charge it to use the airwaves and open it up to competition.
Posted by DarthVader 2019-12-18 08:42||   2019-12-18 08:42|| Front Page Top

#8 Nah, not Pravda

If Boris sent a directive to the Beeb, they'd ignore it. Not something the operator and editors would do at Pravda.

It's more like an entrenched special interest bureaucracy left over from the predecessors.
Posted by Procopius2k 2019-12-18 08:48||   2019-12-18 08:48|| Front Page Top

#9 BBC ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX, PBS, the Obamacare of the media.

I thought I could keep my TV?
Posted by Skidmark 2019-12-18 08:51||   2019-12-18 08:51|| Front Page Top

#10 Taking a cue from Trump, attacking the media?
Posted by Bobby 2019-12-18 09:29||   2019-12-18 09:29|| Front Page Top

#11 W1A is still one of the better British comedies.

Pokes fun at the surreal corporate nature of the Beeb.
Posted by Mullah Richard 2019-12-18 09:29||   2019-12-18 09:29|| Front Page Top

#12 Beeb was IIUC one of the attack dogs for the Remainers. Every BBC piece on the matter that I heard was unmistakably biased against Leave.

This is fitting payback. Sow, reap.
Posted by Lex 2019-12-18 11:58||   2019-12-18 11:58|| Front Page Top

#13 Not the only thing they have a strict Globalist GroupThink™ stance on...
Exclusive: BBC issues internal guidance on how to report climate change
Posted by magpie 2019-12-18 13:39||   2019-12-18 13:39|| Front Page Top

#14 It's almost like the BBC thinks it's in Minneapolistan.
Posted by Woodrow 2019-12-18 18:59||   2019-12-18 18:59|| Front Page Top

#15 seriously considering decriminalising non-payment of the licence fee

(Sigh) Just do it. Or don't. (I realize that it's probably "a process". Fine, initiate the "process". Or don't.)

Spare the people the teasy shit.

Trump does a lot of this too, and both Bad Orange Men run the risk of demoralizing their supporters if they keep doing this. Or is that the plan?
Posted by charger 2019-12-18 21:12||   2019-12-18 21:12|| Front Page Top

09:43 Mullah Richard
09:27 Warthog
09:11 Mercutio
09:07 AlmostAnonymous5839
08:52 Matt
08:24 Matt
08:20 SteveS
07:43 Procopius2k
07:42 BrerRabbit
07:42 Procopius2k
07:39 Procopius2k
07:36 Procopius2k
07:35 Procopius2k
07:34 trailing wife
07:31 Procopius2k
07:30 NN2N1
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07:18 trailing wife
07:14 Richard Aubrey
07:10 NN2N1
07:09 Besoeker
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06:58 NN2N1
06:58 Besoeker









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