Censorship and the BBC *UPDATED*
As occasionally happens due to synchronicity and coincidence, two stories have hove into my sight in the last hour or so, which bear a bit of examination. Firstly, proud, upstanding, priapic legal eagle Lord Goldsmith, who likes to bend over attractive QCs but prefers to bend over for unattractive American bullies has obtained an injunction stopping a BBC investigation into Cash for Peerages. Given that this has CONFLICT OF INTEREST written over it in very large writing it's only natural to wonder exactly what the BBC were planning to show. However, since the request originated with the Police it's possibly not quite as blatant as the headline appears to suggest. In particular, there are doubtless many in Number 10 who'd be only too delighted to have the BBC get them off the hook by prejudicing a trial.
However, given that the Beeb is expressing a certain outrage over apparent censorship there (the headline 'Attorney General halts BBC probe' is inaccurate, it would have been the judge), it's worth keeping an eye on this story from Lenin's Tomb. If the BBC is still so cowed post-Hutton that it won't play an anti-war single, they can't really come over all huffy when a judge slaps an injunction on them.
It does need independent verification and a bit of fleshing out though - like what programme was the radio segment allegedly pulled from? The only two programmes I can suggest with afternoon segments would be on Radio Five Live - either the Simon Mayo show (famous for fawning interviews with Blunkett and managing generally to get two neocons and a Lib Dem on the panel to discuss PMQs every week) or Drive, which pretends to be the Voice of the Common Man and winds up sounding like the Voice of the Daily Mail. Neither is particularly fertile ground for an antiwar single puffed by George Galloway at the best of times. We'll see if it stands up.
If you want to buy it, by the way, it's here. That's here, or if you like, here. Not that we're urging you to buy it (but if you do decide to, it's here). Go on, it'll embarrass Tony Blair.
*UPDATE*
According to the comments on lenin's piece, the BBC have denied they've banned the song, but RESPECT say it has and claim it was Radio 1 Newsbeat that pulled a segment.
As for Lord Goldsmith, the Tory bloggers are suggesting cutely who the BBC were allegedly implicating in the injuncted piece. I'm sure you can guess who (no, not him, he can't use a computer, remember?), since there aren't that many suspects really.
I liked this bit from the
I liked this bit from the end of the BBC article:
It would appear Ming was awake when they asked him for a comment ;)
The Ugly Rumours video is up
The Ugly Rumours video is up on YouTube. I like the bit at the end when George Galloway, dressed as a policeman, charges Tony Blair and has him arrested. If only it was real. Banning a song is quite often a good way to promote it. Hopefully if Galloway asks a question in Parliament (as he's threatening to), then that will be even more publicity for the single. Well done Beeb!
According to the StWC, BBC
According to the StWC, BBC Radio One Newsbeat programme was due to record a package about the single yesterday and pulled out at the last minute. But I'm also told elsewhere that the BBC has denied all knowledge of a ban and says they will play it if it makes the top ten.
Which would be good.
Beat me to it, I'd just
Beat me to it, I'd just literally found that in your thread comments and on the RESPECT site. Of course it doesn't need to be banned not to get airtime.
I believe it was probably a
I believe it was probably a good thing the AG had his arm twisted by the good inspector into seeking this injunction.
As I feel the BBC was going to be used to broadcast a "spoiling" piece on behalf of other interested parties in this whole affair.
Should the BBC have been allowed to go ahead with it's report last night. I think the AG might have looked more favourably upon any claims of prejudice when the charge sheet lands upon his desk from the CPS.
Now more interesting is what arguement did the good Inspector use to suddenly awake the AG's "public interest" spirit?
I do want to correct my
I do want to correct my earlier statement: it was not the StWC that heard these rumours, and they say they have no evidence that it is the case. The claims appear to have been passed on to Respect.
According to the 9AM news on
According to the 9AM news on R4, the email referred to was an internal Number 10 email between two members of Tony Blair's staff.
The Sunday Telegraph
The Sunday Telegraph says:
And the Hate on Sunday says:
 BBC Censors 911 Truth In
BBC Censors 911 Truth In Sunday Special, Announces Collapse Of WTC 7 Before It Happens.
All talk on this petty issue of BBC censoring one lousy program that talked about uninformative dribble, is just a distraction from the real issue of BBC censorship. In particular, the sunday special, conspiracy files that aired on the BBC last month with blatantly tried to denounce and debunk any contrary ideas, theories and FACTS regarding the attacks of 911.
And since the confimation that the BBC WTC-7 video has been authenticated as being in the internet achrive as of 09/11/01, then one SHOULD be talking about in this article about how BBC reporters knew that building 7 in the WTC complex was going to collapse hours before it actually did, even tho no plane or significant plane wreckage hit it.
- Jason Cogan
BBC somehow have "Ugly
BBC somehow have "Ugly Rumours" down at No. 21! A bit strange, as they were No. 6 in the midweek charts and now No. 3 on Virgin. From the youtube video download rate it doesn't look as if interest is waning. Hmmm!
I can now answer my own
I can now answer my own question. It appears that over 3000 of the downloads were ruled out by the official charts company because they were multiples. There is a second mix now available from Indiestore, which will still contribute. So you can also type "Peace2" to the same number if you'd like to download a second copy for a friend.