Seeing the Herald headline story above, I was cast back to a piece of research I did into Good Morning Scotland’s coverage of issues around the forthcoming referendum. They will have to go some this time round if they’re to manage the level of naked propaganda they achieved then. The full horror of their 3 to 1 bias can be found here with examples starting on page 32:
https://thoughtcontrolscotland.files.wordpress.com/2015/08/propagandascotlandreferendum2014.pdf
Over the space of 1 month, April 2014, 376 statements could be coded as negative for the Yes campaign, whereas only 147 could be coded as negative for Better Together. The 3 to 1 ratio was also seen in interrupts where Yes supporters were interrupted 34 times, whereas Better Together supporters were only interrupted 10 times. Perhaps the most extreme example was when James Naughtie, brought back north to toughen up the team, aggressively interrupted Nicola Sturgeon 7 times in one interview.
Some of the other low points, were these interviews:
On 12th April:
Visiting Professor in Media Policy at Glasgow Caledonian University was interviewed
by Graham Stewart on Scottish broadcasting after independence. The interview
followed on from an exchange with the current DG of Irish broadcaster RTE, Kevin
Backhurst. Backhurst had given a very informative fact-based and contemporary
account of RTE’s self-sufficiency and quite limited need to buy from BBC – only
Eastenders! Stewart’s questioning fairly presented the Scottish Government’s position,
from the White Paper, on a future relationship with the BBC and refrained from the
aggressive, interrupting style of some of his colleagues. Hutcheson’s responses,
however, were long, one-sided, more polemical than academic and doom-laden for
Scottish audiences but devoid of evidence despite predicting confidently with
numbers. Referring twice to the need to ‘do the sums’ without ever offering the
elements of these sums, Hutcheson went on to assure Scots that they would be paying
up to £250 as opposed to the current £150 for a TV licence – ‘it’s gonna cost us a lot
more’.
Similarly, the interview of Lord Robertson by James Naughtie on the 8th allows the former to make a number of confident predictions authenticated only by his previous experience and unchallenged by Naughtie. On the 11th, Naughtie goes on to interview former Pentagon adviser, Frank Miller, whose equally negative views are simply accepted with none of the background on Miller one would expect from a journalist. A quick internet search reveals, in a peer-reviewed source (Sauer, 2005: 22), Miller as a bullish, superannuated, cold warrior still thinking fondly of how his championing of mutually assured destruction had won against more nuanced defence strategies in his time in the Pentagon in the 1960s to 1980s, thirty years ago. On the same day, Naughtie
himself, claims that the wider world is watching Scotland based, one must assume, on
his interviews with two defence hawks now detached from current realities in NATO.
Also on the same day, Glen Campbell refers to only a ‘slight’ narrowing of the polls
despite evidence of a gap which according to a New Statesman report in April, has
narrowed from 24 to 8.
If you have the time, the full extent is shockingly worth a wee reminder of just how far they went then (page 32 on):
Talking-up Scotland 'Albatraz' 
Yeah John you have already been ‘hit’. Luckily it backfired as do all their attacks and more and more so as we get get more canny.
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John when we become self governing, if we have a system of rewarding those in public life who add value to our society, then I shall put your name forward.
The freedom of Ayr Toon Centre (once a famous racing driver), a three-cornered hat wi’ a rosette, and a life-time membership of The Ailsa Craig kiting (coits) Club. All shall, munificently, be yours!
Enjoy!
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I won’t sleep now! I do like a bit of munificence.
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Silk and fur, with feathers—just what you like!
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Having been courted like many over the past couple of days to speak up in support of the BBC in Scotland what follows made a big impression!
On 18 February 2020 Brian Taylor, the Political editor of BBC Scotland wrote what I suppose he thought was a very erudite article for BBC Scotland online with the title: “What is the Scottish government’s guiding philosophy?”
It is a snarky piece of writing. However, it is at the very end of the piece that the author fully reveals his true colours and his real status as a serious journalist working for a much loved, unbiased public sector broadcaster. Taylor writes:
“That is why (Scottish) ministers have repeatedly sought ways to stress the limited and balanced nature of their tax structure. But doing so in pragmatic, rather than philosophical terms.
I await with interest the approach to be adopted in this regard by the new cabinet secretary. It may prove a source of innocent merriment.”
Innocent? Aye right!
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Hi John had another read and this evidence can and will be used again.
It reminded me how reporting Scotland went round the whole of Europe to garner negative headlines.
This happened despite RS knowing nobody official could talk on this matter from any of the countries as Scotland could not ask only the UK as member.
They got their headlines by using general answers to a theoretical question. The Irish and the government of Luxembourg had to make a formal complaint for this to be retracted.
They had a field day with Borruso who was an official by right of it was the Portuguese turn. He said Spain would veto us rejoining and because he sounded Spanish this was taken as being true.
As you will know he was looking to get a vote from Cameron and had met him on more than one occasion to discuss this.
We are in different times now so can you see BBC doing the same when officials can speak freely.
Seems to me we were always going to be welcome back then but lies have a habit of coming back to bite you.
Or have they already done this and not liked the answer!
Thanks for keeping us sane with your (our) news.
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Thanks for your support.Appreciated.
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I like many others were well aware back in 2013/2014 how bad the BBC actually was, remember the demo’s outside Pacific House.These have fell away, but will likely need to be returned to very soon.
I have never listened to a BBC s news broadcast that does not have an anti SNP line at least tagged on but many full on. They think the have us, they think manipulate our minds with their hocum.
Well likely there some, but most of the Scottish public are very aware what the BBC are and their propaganda purposes are too. They have the damn cheek to talk about democracy of other countries, when they spin everything.
They are for the bin when Indy finally arrives. We see them as they are, Westminster’s propaganda unit.
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