Glowing press coverage for Cameron's speech

Bernerlap

Good to see the speech got the credit it deserved in the print media. However, is anyone else getting very very angry at the BBC. I totally resent having to pay my licence fee to an institution that produces (mostly) lousy programmes and makes no attempt to hide its leftwing sympathies.
Michael Crick on Newsnight last night was an absolute disgrace.
The Conservative Party should use the digital switchover to make the BBC as it stands at the moment a subscription channel.

Alan Phillips

The Irony is that Crick gave the speech 7/10 just behind Gordy's...

What can't the beeb see that the rest can, has Arsene Wenger been appointed to the top job?

I thought the speech was just right, hinting at policies without spilling the bean.

He did sound stateman like, three times this week, all in different styles, all rigth for the time.

If this means Murdoch has shown his hand, then we have witnessed the dress rehersal for the day after the night before at the next General Election.

about time too...

strapworld

With reference to the BBC. I do hope The SUN takes up this issue. Crick has shown so much bias he should be sacked, as should the producer of Newsnight and the Editor of BBC television news. Similarly the radio is no better and we should be demanding a mass cull of this organisation. McCarthyism? certainly not but the BBC, if anything, should be politically neutral.

If more and more of our serious writers were to take this theme to their respective newspaper columns then something would be done.

Nicholas

Crick is a Labour stooge. Outside the Leftist celebrity clique of the BBC and New Labour his credibility is completely shot.

It is an unfortunate fact that the BBC continues to be an unquestioning and partisan mouthpiece for New Labour.

Paul Hampson

I agree. The BBC has started to become fairly biased. But then agin... they are very politically correct and sanctimonious. That puts them in bed with the Government on attitude. No wonder everything Cameron does is wrong; he dares to be optimistic and challenge the brain washed society new Labour have created.

TrevorsDen

Brown regularly says this crisis began in America - now as shown in the Telegraph its clear European banks were far worse. This story is a 'must read'
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/comment/ambroseevans_pritchard/3118994/Financial-Crisis-So-much-for-tirades-against-American-greed.html

I doubt that the BBC will pick up Brown next time he tries to lay it on America.

Susan Hill

The BBC has been laughably and ignorantly biased for the whole of NewLab`s tenure...it is also the only institution whch continues to swallow the Climate Change/Global Warming scam whole and without allowing a seriously scientific dissenting voice on the subject. I used to listen to Woman`s Hour because it was for the thinking woman.. well yes, if you are a pc, new labour woman, preferably of gay muslim persuasion it is.

MartSharm

I was incredulous at the coverage on Radio "Labour" 4 at 5pm yesterday. First of all they "lose" a recorded statement from Chris Grayling - was it just me or did the newscaster not seem the least bit surprised or bothered by this? And then the sole coverage of Cameron's performance consisted of soundbites from "voters" who, to a man/woman, absolutely slated it, with quotes like "this was the most boring speech I've ever heard", not a shred of subtlety or balance to be heard. This was so clearly partisan I am beside myself with anger. No self-respecting journalist would have put their name to this. Whilst being a fan of much of the BBC's output, and Radio 5 seems to remain reasonably balanced, something needs to be done about the rest of the BBC's blatant bias. With the future of the licence fee in long-term doubt, the BBC have to be very careful here.

Jackie M Miller

I agree that Michael Crick's performance yesterday was a disgrace. But it is increasingly what one is coming to expect from the BBC. Nick Robinson is routinely biased, the Newsnight and Today teams routinely give Tories a much, much harder time than they give New Labour and even Andrew Marr, who is an intellectual giant by comparison with Nick Robinson and who normally appears to be a likeable human being, was politely gentle with Gordon Brown in his pre-conference interview but aggressively rude with David Cameron in his, interrupting and contradicting him so many times that Cameron did well to keep his temper.
I'm beginning to resent paying my licence fee to hear unchallenged New Labour propaganda.

JONNY

Can anyone kindly tell me please oh please...
what was Mad Hatters doing esterday in B'ham on the Beeb's coverage - sitting there ensconced in the middle of an exclusive Tory event - pouring cold scorn any just about everything. Mixed with a liberal spluttering of saliva?

Frank P

Jackie M Miller

"I'm beginning to resent paying my licence fee to hear unchallenged New Labour propaganda."

Beginning to ...!!!! Join the club of an extremely large and long held membership. Welcome!

John Page

The FT's conference commentator wasn't much impressed by the speech.

Frank P

Well as a very reluctant supporter of the Cameroons (I long for some basso profundo to give depth to the straining tenor and often falsetto voice of new conswervatism (sic)) I felt that there was a growing maturity in both his presentation and content.

David Davis should stop his silly posturing and get back into cabinet office (after a few more sessions with the public speaking experts and voice trainers); we need to see more of Ann Widdecombe in serious mood; please make sure that Normal Fowlup is kept in the nursing home out of the away - his dithering in TV the other day reminded me of why the Tories were ousted in the first place. Who let him out - or did the left invite him to an interview to reminds us?

David Cameron was okay +. Just cut out the 'call-me-Dave- shit and consolidate the gravitas, Mr Cameron.

He has a year to prepare himself for actual office; his wife will be a wonderful partner in his campaign; she is hitting just the right tone of smiling self-effacement with glints of inner strength and, though I shouldn't mention it at my age, er - vivaciousness, is perhaps the best word, viewed from my perspective.

The fact that the BBC had to rubbish it so determinedly means that the sppeech got right under their skin; the coverage was disgraceful. I'm very disappointed with Jeremy Thompson on Sky News also. His objectivity is usually admirable. But his remarks after the speech were sullen and grossly unfair.

9 out of 10 David. Keep that up and I'm aboard The Good Ship Cameroon.

How about it Verity? C'mon. All hands on deck, despite the whiff of Blairism still hanging about the bridge! we've got 18 months or so to scrub down the decks with cleansing caustic soda.

Robert

Nick Robinson, biased? Yes, but what do you expect from an ex conservative student's leader?

Patrick

Contrast the standard two liner in Browns speech on the Armed Forces, 'best in world' etc etc with the excellent slot on Ranger Blane Millar in David Camerons speech.

The reaction in the Armed Forces was very positive as was the reaction to Camerons Helmand visit. He listened and talked with, rather than at, the soldiers and the general opinion was 'Top Bloke'.

No overt piss take either like the "To Cyclops" tank signing wheeze that the tankies pulled on Brown at Basra.

But lets leave it to Ranger Millars Mum and Dad,

"Blane phoned just before the speech to say they were watching it on the big screen they have in the camp. Apparently it went down really well with the soldiers.

"He was delighted by it. He said they all cheered and clapped when it happened, but he just couldn't believe it."

Well done DC. Just do not let the Armed Forces down when you are in No 10 and get that Covenant sorted pronto.

oldtimer

The BBC is not only biased, it is grossly incompetent. Here is an example from this morning.

The BBC is so useless it cannot get the day of its weather forecasts right. This morning, the 5.55am weather forecast was for the day before! It was obvious it was 24 hours out of date because it included a forecast of the weather for Chelsea`s match in Romania the night before and kept referring to weather expected on Wednesday!

Add to that the innumerable spelling mistakes that appear on the captions at the bottom of the TV screen.

It reinforces the impression of a disfunctional organisation grown fat on a regressive tax (the licence fee) collected with menaces (threats of imprisonment).

Jon

James, why didn't you mention the Brown Broadcasting Corporation, the official broadcasting arm of the Labour Party?

... their glowing praise and adulation for Labour/Brown during Labour’s conference (esp., Crick, Marr) – serving them much positive airtime and acres of space; contrasted with their mostly negative, carefully edited coverage of the Conservatives conference.

jon dee

I try again to register my disgust with the poisonous pro-Labour bias emanating from a wide area of BBC TV and radio coverage.
It is almost hysterical at times as Maitlis and Davis have recently proved whilst Crick appears to have become a full-time Labour apologist.
BBC senior management have either lost control or are sanctioning this behaviour.
Which is it?

Paul B

Good God, if the Guardian is warming to him,Im off. Pretty Polly on the same side, the mere thought of it has brought me over quite peculiar. Forced to me lay down , with a cold flannel, and a glass of Chateau de Old Hooky,a particular fine pint from the North Oxfordshire brewery.

Faceless Bureaucratm

Bernerlap [10.18am]

"...is anyone else getting very very angry at the BBC..."

Angry?, ANGRY??? - I'm beyond anger and have entered the zone of INCANDESCENT!!

Their appallingly negative coverage of the Cameron speeches (not to mention the rest of the Conservative Party Conference) is only increased by the fact that they are now not even trying to disguise the fact.

One of Cameron's first duties when in Office is to gut this veritable 'rat's nest' of NuLab apologists and implement a root & branch reform of the Licence Fee. Ordinary citizens should not be taxed to pay for left-wing propaganda. As somebody said recently - "G*d we have to change all that"...

Jonny Jimmy

I've just been checking out the BBC website's complaint pages. They have a record of replies to complaints received. Under the heading 'bias', this was the only complaint and its response:
Today, Radio 4, 15 May 2008Publication date: 27 May 2008
Complaint

We received complaints from listeners who felt John Humphrys' interview with Prime Minister Gordon Brown was too aggressive.

The BBC's response

It certainly had a testy exchange in the middle section, and was fairly combative throughout but we don't think it left an air of ill-will. Our only concern, as always, was to do a forensic interview and ask the questions the listeners wanted the answers for. All interviews have a dynamic of their own and perhaps this was one of the less measured ones, but that's the way the questions - and the answers - took us. We feel the Prime Minister, in 26 minutes, was given plenty of opportunity to voice his views.

Can you believe this??

Hereford

Bernerlap: Angry? I am so furious that I have stopped paying the licence fee. I don't have a telly now. I use BBC iPlayer and ITV and Channel 4's equivalent. As a consequence I don't have to pay the fee.

It has the added side benefit of helping you to be judicious in your telly watching habits. I am very happy with it.

Faceless Bureaucrat

Jonny Jimmy [3.45pm]

"Can you believe this??"

Oh yes....

Wilfred

I entirely agree with Bernerlap, Faceless B, et al, regarding the BBC. Disgraceful!

I've had to switch Newsnight off in a rage 3 nights in a row (during the Conservative conference, coincidentally!).

As for Mr Cameron, I'm in total agreement with Frank Pulley. And, yes, come on Verity - surely a couple of degrees of warming towards the Cameroons is now possible?

Oscar

Ironic isn't it that Nick Robinson branded the speech a Daily Mail speech but of course Dacre is a Brown crony and can only bring himself to be lukewarm about the speech.

I too have been apopletic about the BBCs coverage. It is much too soft to call it bias. The BBC has implemented relentless, systematic subversion of the Conservative conference and equally relentless and systematic promotion of Gordon Brown. It reached a crescendo with Cameron's speech. Across the entire network the BBC managed to find people to rubbish the speech. Minutes after it finished Radio 5 broadcast one viewer saying it was "the worst speech he'd ever heard". None of the so called 'floating voters' interviewed had anything positive to say. But if you read the comments on HYS about 75% of them were positive - indeed glowingly positive. Yet BBC broadcasts couldn't even reflect the opinions being published on their own website. Now they have egg all over their hypocritical faces. I spent a considerable amount of time last night putting in a complaint - but the complaints system is yet another fix. The relationship between Brown and our public broadcaster is mutually self serving. Some intervention needs to be made to break this up before it's too late.

Hagar

Bernerlap: take a look at Iain Martin's blog over at the Daily Telegraph. He has highlighted the problem of left wing bias of the BBC. Many people are realising this, especially after yesterday when Cameron's speech was hardly mentioned let alone its content debated.

Sean ej

Verity - Previous postings you have made show you are warmer towards Sarah Palin than David Cameron...Would you trust her more than him?

TGF UKIP

While agreeing with all the fulminations at the BBC, I can't help pointing out that the Tories do have it in their own hands to get tough with the Beeb and make clear that getting even with your enemies is a political imperative.

I'm also very surprised that none of the avid Cameroons either on the Speccie editorial staff nor among Coffee Housers has chosen to mention the rather fulsome praise that Simon Heffer devoted to the speech in today's DT.

But there again as I know that Heffer is a dirty word in the fanzine, perhaps I shouln't be too surprised.

carol42

I would gladly pay for a British version of Fox News but I resent every penny paid to the utterly and obviously biased BBC and it it high time the licence tax was abolished. I would love just one tv news/current affairs programme that represented my point of view. Not too much to ask surely.

DeeDee99

By far the most biased BBC interviewer is Andrew Marr. Whenever he interviews members of the Government he gives them an easy ride, but he never stops interrupting Tory guests. I've given up with BBC news. I'm sick to death of the pro-EU propaganda and it's so biased and politically correct it's not worth watching.