Bradshaw goes to war against the Sun

Sally Chatterjee

He strikes me as too shrill, too ready to argue. Especially as it sounds like sour grapes and it looks expedient.

After all, Blair travelled all the way to Australian to meet Rupert Murdoch and his executives in 1995.

Ed P

Why anyone listens to a word from this preening, intellectually-challenged "Culture" Secretary is astounding. A better example of the hollow core of NuLab people would be hard to find.

Sue MV

NuLabour should know. They are the experts in state run media operations!

David Ossitt

“it hardly makes the government seem objective and level-headed.”

Surely that is the point; this government of is not objective or level headed, it is a socialist government of liars, cheats and malcontents, all of whom were delighted when the Sun Newspaper danced to their tune, but who can not even begin to understand why the Sun has now abandoned them.

It is time for a change; time for some honest pragmatism in politics for far too long we have had to listen to the gobbledygook of fourth rate socialists, who will vomit their socialist neo-Marxist claptrap with every word spoken.

Stuart Beamish

Those of us who go to great lengths to avoid putting money into the dirty digger's pockets will hope this story is false, but of course NuLabour are the home of deals of this type, so they should know.

R King

Seems like a pretty smart move Ben if they have done a deal. Let's hope it's a better one that Blair signed up to.

Now stop being a silly girl's blouse and get on with it!!

Frank Leader

What goes round comes round. I don't remember Bradshaw complaining when the Sun mistakenly supported Labour. If they had not we might have been spared the last 12/13 years of the grossest incompetence.

dilys

So Ben Bradshaw has a hissy fit shortly after Mandy and on the same subject. Any news for us?

John Barrett

I really do sometimes wonder about the correspondents in The Speccie these days.

Bradshaw is quite unhinged, his accusations that the BBC was "Tory" are evidence of that. It is a desperate accusation from a failed and soon to be ex-minister ( just ask the fishermen what they think of La Bradshaw ).

luke

Does anyone here actually read the sun though?

It's not just switched its editorial line. The entirely of the news coverage has adopted a visciousness about the labour government that is quite disturbing.

Disturbing because it is, you imagine, what the papers would look like in some kind of totalitarian society - just totally biased news coverage which bares no relation to what actually happened.

Even on things like the floods at the weekend, the sun didnt carry a single quote or line from the prime minister, preferring instead to take david cameron's words.

Editorial judgments are one thing - and the sun are totally within their rights to support whoever. But when that starts routinely impacting news coverage I think thats a dangerous thing myself.

JGS

The Heseltine rule applies to Mt Bradshaw: never trust a man with over-coiffed hair.

DavidDP

Core vote strategy. Think Hague "saving the pound" or Howard "it's not racist to be concerned about immigration". Labour know they can't win, but need to avoid a collapse in the core.

Andy Carpark

Why do we need a Minister for Culture, Media and Sport?

Mark C

Luke - you may or may not be right about the Sun, but have you ever read the Mirror? I don't hear many complaints from Labour about its journalistic values.

Frizby

The Sun needs to sell papers and generate web site traffic like all the others and gauges the mood of the country as anti-Labour and desperate for a GE. They are not dependent on License fees or smarmy Labour hand-outs or Knighthoods etc...

JONNY

'The entirely of the Mirror news coverage has adopted a visciousness about the Conservative Opposition that is quite disturbing.'

Thanks Luke. Couldn't have put it better myself (spelling excepted).

Alex

It was less damaging for Labour to be supported by Murdoch because Labour wanted right wing votes...

The Sun won't deliver any left wing votes for Cameron...

In fact if the belief that that Cameron is in Murdoch's pocket gains credence it will be damaging to the Tory cause.

The Labour line will be "...remember the last time we were governed by the Sun....millions unemployed and a price worth paying, so we were told...."

In2minds

Bradshaw talks about “a dining table in north Oxfordshire”. We should remember that Tony Blair had to go to Australia to get Nulabour in front of Murdoch. Is Bradshaw jealous about these two journeys and the inevitable comparison?

Verity

Frank Leader writes: "... we might have been spared the last 12/13 years of the grossest incompetence."

Are you still that naive? "Grossest incompetence", when they carried out the entire hollowing out of society and the destruction of Britain under the radar?

The correct charge is "grossest malice".

strapworld

Is there any truth in the rumour that Bradshaw was privately seeking a job with Sky when he loses his Exeter seat,and that Murdoch told him he had no chance?

I wouldn't put anything past these incompetent lightweights.

General Zod

Don't read the Sun, but can't say I feel remotely disturbed by what you describe, Luke. I do, however dip into the Mirror (you have to know what the enemy is saying - Maguire in particular) and it would nto be possible to have a more biased slant on the news than that paper.

Boudicca

What a big girls' blouse Bradshaw is. Does he really think we give a monkey's for his opinion on The Sun and the Conservatives.

Nicholas

This numpty Bradshaw is one of the dangerous ones, together with Burnham and that other shrill witch Harmon. The three of them should be round a cauldron cackling at the Scottish Prince.

Alex

"Does Bradshaw really have the inside track on a "deal" between the Tories and News International? If so, it's a bigger story than one aside in an interview would seem to suggest."

Surely the question is: how is it possible to believe that there has not been a deal...

evidence...

Young Mr Murdoch goes to Edinburgh and attacks the BBC as "state sponsored news" and a barrier to competition (i.e New International's ambitions) but gets no supporting noises from government. A few days later the Sun switches support to the Conservatives. A few days further on the Conservatives Culture Spokesman attacks the BBC and says that, if elected, they will scrap the BBC's Royal Charter and look at its website, sales and international operations'.

Not proof exactly, but you don't have to be a conspiracy theorist to see the logic.

Ken

@luke- "...what the papers would look like in some kind of totalitarian society - just totally biased news coverage which bares no relation to what actually happened."

Oh I dunno page three continues to "bare" a close resemblance to its long-standing traditions!

And even if t'were so how different is that from the daily vitriol pouring out of the government information service masquerading as the BBC?

Michael Booth

It's a Bradshaw hissy-fit, nothing more. Quite happy when The Sun was shining on ZanuLabour but rather miffed now the clouds have swept in. Oh dear oh dear. I'm sure Bradshaw will soon have his Sou'wester on and will be looking for the rainbow...

Occasional Ostrich

Did anyody see this clown on 'Newsnight' last week? He seemed to me to be bidding for the spot hopefully (or maybe not) to be left vacant by David Icke.

2trueblue

Would he belong to the same party that have had the Blair/Brown Broadcasting Corporation in their pocket for the past 12yrs?

Dorothy Wilson

This man is a twerp of the first order - and there are a good many of them in Labour. His comments are probably part of the back-lash we can expect from Labour. Also, as JGS says never trust a man with over-coiffered hair. Or dyed hair eg Burnham.

That being said, don't under-estimate the damage they can do. Scorpion and tail come to mind.

Yarnesfromhorsham

Noticed over the weekend on a TV news that Ben was carrying Mandy's bag. Did you see Mandy's face when asked about the appointment of Baroness Ashton - classic

Frank Leader

Verity I stand corrected What goes round "grossest malice" is much better.

Fernando

The implication is that The Sun is only backing Cameron because of promised favours. Which begs the question of what were the favours proffered by Labour from 1996 to 2008. Could it be no VAT on newspapers? Or possibly no referral to OFT of Murdoch’s dominance in the UK media? Then again, perhaps it was just privileged access to information, such as Cherie’s pregnancy or the postponing of the 2001 general election.

EyeSee

The Sun side with the Conservatives and suddenly they are under their control. Not quite eh? Not like a certain newspaper, who's editor I believe was up to his neck with the litle Brown gang who were dreaming up slurs against Tories. Now that is being in cahoots. Or what about the control Mad Al Campbell thought he should have when, with affected, mock outrage he demanded all manner of stupid things, because someone said one word in one live radio programme early one morning, that he didn't like? There is one bloke for whom we can show humanity when, having come back to our senses we lock the man up in a cell with windows. He can then continue licking them out of harms way.

Valerunner

The source of this line is of course Alistair Campbell, who was floating it a couple of weeks ago on This Week, just after the Sun became Public Enemy No.1 for being nasty about our Great Leader's spelling. Tories = Sun = Nasty! Have you got that, voters???

Marcher Baron

"TV news free from impartiality rules" I thought we already had that; it's called the BBC.

Chuck Unsworth

Does the cretinous Bradshaw seriously believe he's going to win this one? Probably he's stupid enough to think he can.

Frank P

Bradshaw goes to war against the sun? Who does he think he is, Icarus? This waxy-winged woofter should watch it, or he'll be banished to Ikaria!

Beer Moth

He's spent. He's been on the slide ever since 'Four Weddings..."

Amadeus Plonquer

Buried in this article is a perfect comparison between Windmill Dave and Phoney Tony.

Tony Blair had to fly his entourage half way around the planet to Australia to do a deal with Murdoch while Dave only had to cycle to Oxfordshire.

The Tories should be congratulated for REAL progress in minimising their 'carbon footprint'.

Mike

Bradshaw like most of Labours pathetic whiners were more than happy to have Murdoch on board to get into power but when the boots on the other foot they complain bitterly like a bunch of kindergarten infants being told to clear up the mess they created. Its time Labour ministers got some back bone and engaged in honest debate rather than looking like a bunch of half baked pansies who are clueless about solving the ills they brought down onto the country.