News & Election 79.

[Balmoral Green]

Was flashing through the channels this morning, came across the original Election 79 coverage on the parliament channel. As part of the coverage, they were showing the complete regular BBC new bulletins from the time along with it. I wish we could go back to that kind of news again. It consisted of...

News, News, News.
Information, Information, Information.
Facts, Facts, Facts.

There wasn't any spin, bullst or opinion. No trick camera work, arty farty techniques or dramatic licence. It was quite superb.

How the hell did we get to the complete total utter fiction that passes for BBC news today?

[Jasandjules]

Politicised BBC.

Next.

[anonymous-user]

IT Geeks, all those poxy computerised graphics make me reach for the remote, that's not saying that it's worth watching in the first place though.

Edited by excel789 on Monday 4th May 10:57

[robinhood21]

Yes! Thirty years today - Maggie T came to power. raises glass (well tea at this time of the AM) to Maggie.

[Merc fan]

You're quite right BG. Of all people, the BBC, as a publically funded entity, should be capable of not having to keep up the ratings. Besides, fact based news will always get the best ratings. I still think the BBC is better than most. ITN, for the most part (and excluding Channel 4 news), is full of weak social-issue-based news.

[Eric Mc]

I remember the night of the election really well. BBC went over live to their reporter outside Mrs T's house to try and catch her as she made her trip to Buck House to accept the postion of PM. Richard Dimbleby was anchor man. As they switched to the scene outside the house, Dimbleby noticed that the BBC cameraman was pointing the camera directly at the ITN presenter, who was also outside the house. The ITN presenter was the then very presentable Ms Anna Ford.

Dimbleby made some comment that this wasn't the lady he was expecting to see.

Edited by Eric Mc on Monday 4th May 11:25

[chris watton]

I was watching The Politics Show on BBC1 yesterday, and the BBC journalist was giving this self made millionaire (and employer of many other tax paying workers) a hard time about the latter stating that he ‘may’ leave the UK because of the 50% tax rate.

The successful business owner stated time and time again that it wasn’t the 50% tax rate that would make him leave, as he loves the UK, but the ‘squandering’ of tax payer’s money he had a major issue with. The Journalist just wasn’t listening and kept saying “But, shouldn’t you pay more as you’re more privileged…”, to which the guy said he pays £13 MILLION in taxes already, and he added that all he wished for is that it was spent a lot better, instead of being wasted by a bloated public sector – but still the journalist didn’t want to hear this…”But, it’s only fair as you earn a lot more….” I could sense the utter frustration of this businessman as he tried to contain himself.

Before this, on the Andrew Marr Show, as has already been mention, it was like a socialist tea party, Ken Livingstone (I have no idea why he was there, what is he?), and Patrick Stewart, a devout Labour follower and praising Gordon Brown!

It is always the same on Question Time – big house hold names for Labour, and slightly nutty names for the BBC’s opposition.

Berlusconi's own TV network is now less biased!

[unrepentant]

If you think the BBC is bad spend time in the US before an election! I spent 6 weeks there leading up to the election last year and the coverage was wall to wall and totally partisan. The pro Republican Fox coverage was nauseating and the pro Democrat MSNBC bias almost as bad. No attempt at balance whatsoever.



To Maggie. Where for art thou Magwold....