The BBC’s hypocrisy is now clear for all to see
After the mass rape, kidnap and slaughter of Israeli civilians by Hamas on October 7, many viewers wondered why the BBC kept refusing to refer to the perpetrators as terrorists. Thankfully, John Simpson was on hand to explain.
“Terrorism is a loaded word, which people use about an outfit they disapprove of morally,” wrote the BBC’s World Affairs Editor, in a post for the BBC News website. “It’s simply not the BBC’s job to tell people who to support and who to condemn – who are the good guys and who are the bad guys.”
No doubt licence fee-payers were reassured by these admirably high-minded sentiments. I have just one question.
Why doesn’t the BBC apply this scrupulously even-handed approach when reporting on conservatives?
I only ask, because on Saturday Rishi Sunak travelled to Rome to speak at the Atreju political festival. Or, as the BBC described it: a “far-Right rally”.
I for one found this a curious choice of phrase. Because I can’t help feeling that “far-Right” is – how shall I put it? – something of a loaded word. A word that people use about an outfit they disapprove of morally. So I must admit that I’m surprised to find the BBC deploying such a term. Because, as we know, it’s simply not the BBC’s job to tell people who to support and who to condemn – who are the good guys and who are the bad guys.
At any rate, the political festival – or “far-Right rally” – that Mr Sunak attended was hosted by Giorgia Meloni, the prime minister of Italy. Presumably, therefore, the BBC considers her to be far-Right, too. Given her well-known obsession with Lord of the Rings, and her declaration that “I think Tolkien could say better than we can what conservatives believe in”, I was under the impression that her philosophy owed rather more to The Hobbit than to Mein Kampf.
On the other hand, she’s promised to crack down on illegal immigration, is sceptical of gender ideology, and worse still, once praised Margaret Thatcher. So I suppose that, on this occasion, the BBC had no choice but to abandon its noble commitment to impartial language. Massacring 1,200 Israelis is one thing. But applauding Mrs Thatcher is a step too far.
Happy Christmas, from The Guardian
You’ve got to admire The Guardian. No matter how often people accuse it of being po-faced, sanctimonious and achingly right-on, it refuses to be deterred. It just soldiers undauntedly on, doing what it does.
This is why I was delighted, the other day, when it unveiled its definitive ranking of the 25 greatest Christmas films of all time. Naturally the list had no place for such lowbrow, downmarket, vulgarly commercial tat as Home Alone or, perish the thought, Love Actually.
But it did have a place for an obscure, low-budget film about a meth-smoking transgender prostitute.
And quite right, too. If there’s one thing guaranteed to fill viewers with Christmas cheer and goodwill to all men, it’s a no-holds-barred portrayal of drug addiction and the sex trade. So it warms my heart to think of the countless Guardian readers who, inspired by their favourite newspaper, will be gathering their children round the television on Christmas Day to enjoy this delightful festive treat.
“Come along, Artemis. Sit down, Allegra. And you, Mungo. We’re all going to watch a lovely Christmas film together.”
“Ooh, is it The Grinch?”
“Or Jingle All the Way?”
“Or The Holiday?”
“Certainly not. It’s Tangerine: a criminally overlooked arthouse masterpiece from 2015 about a trans sex worker in LA who discovers that her boyfriend, who is also her pimp, has been cheating on her with a cisgender woman. What could be more Christmassy?”
“Er…”
“Apparently the entire film was a shot on three iPhones using a simple $8 video app. I must confess, I’d never actually heard of it before now, but it must be good. In The Guardian’s official countdown of the 25 best Christmas films ever made, they’ve ranked it six places higher than It’s a Wonderful Life.”
“But, Dad… I’m sure it’s a great film. It’s just that I’m looking at the Wikipedia entry about it, and it sounds just a tiny bit depressing. Especially the bit at the end where some men throw a bottle of urine in the trans sex worker’s face while shouting transphobic abuse at her. Since it’s Christmas, could we not watch something a bit more… lighthearted? Jolly? Fun?”
“Oh, all right then. Let’s see what else The Guardian recommends in its list of favourite festive films. Ah, perfect: at number five, they’ve put Carol. A critically acclaimed drama about divorce, intolerance and how hard it was to be a lesbian in the 1950s.”
Way of the World is a twice-weekly satirical look at the headlines aiming to mock the absurdities of the modern world. It is published at 7am every Tuesday and Saturday
