McFadyen, who rather uncharacteristically failed to insert any violent language into a headline about the First Minister, instead leapt eagerly onto an artificial furore around the actions of Gregg Brain, the Australian father battling his family’s deportation from the Highlands by the Home Office, at last week’s SNP conference.
We got an email from Gregg Brain about how the story had come into being, and (with his permission) we thought you might like to see the exchange which took place between him and Siobhan McFadyen, with the purposes of illustrating how the press distorts, perverts and selectively omits quotes in order to mislead.
An article by Nick Cohen in the Spectator last night fairly had social media ablaze with a heady brew of anger and mockery.
It’s the most extraordinary outpouring of deranged, spittle-flecked arsewash we’ve seen outside of a Daily Express comment thread in a very considerable time, and it merits attention solely because we think it might have broken a world record for the number of empirical falsehoods contained in an article in a respectable media outlet.
Get your clickers out, readers. You’re going to need a fast trigger finger.
We had a bit of a debate at the weekend with ITV’s generally pretty decent Scotland correspondent Peter Smith, after he tweeted this:
It wasn’t the curious choice of picture we objected to, nor the fact that the £14.8bn figure is a notional sum which is totally meaningless in the context of an independent Scotland (because it represents a vague estimate of the disaggregated finances of a Scotland that’s inside the UK and subject to UK government policy choices).
Nor was it even the implication that a £14.8bn “black hole” was an inherent permanent feature of the Scottish economy rather than an unusually bad year.
What chafed with us was the idea that it was somehow Nicola Sturgeon’s fault.
Hardcore nutter collective Scotland In Union are already the de facto unofficial No campaign group for the second independence referendum.
Evidently very well-connected and already flush with cash from sources unknown, the limited company recently raised a reported £300,000 for itself at a “charity” dinner attended by such luminaries of the great and the good as Lord Alistair Darling, Lord Dunlop and (um) Willie Rennie, auctioning off exotic high-end goodies like hunting trips to Africa, polo parties with the Maharajah of Jodhpur and Alpine holidays described in the lavish 60-page auction catalogue as featuring:
“A fabulous chalet and a family home, with six bedrooms sleeping 12, all en suite. Although the chalet does not come with a chalet girl, we will provide one for you.”
(There were also some signed JK Rowling books for the paupers.)
So that’s nice. Extremely wealthy people – just getting into the dinner was £250 – who are doing very well out of the way things are, donating big wads of money to some other people trying to ensure that the rich folk stay that way. No law against it. But just who are the true believers rushing bravely to the defence of the Union’s elites?
There was a rather comforting predictability about the headlines the Scottish media greeted the first day of the SNP conference in Glasgow with.
Unsurprisingly, the Express’ lead story was a piece of fabricated drivel based on alleged quotes from an unnamed source claiming that the Scottish Government would resign in order to force an election and win a mandate that it already has.
(The SNP’s manifesto this May, on which it won a third landslide election victory in a row, clearly reserved the right to call a second referendum should there be a serious material change in circumstances, explicitly citing the Brexit scenario as an example.)
Both articles are essentially the sort of comedy pastiches of terrible journalism one might create as a cautionary example in a media studies degree course, so we’ll waste no more of your time on them. The Herald’s piece, though, is at least marginally more interesting.
Alert readers may recall that almost three years ago, the No campaign issued a series of dire warnings that independence could cause supermarket prices to rise:
Thankfully, by staying in the UK and therefore leaving the EU, Scotland etc etc.
Readers may be aware that Wings Over Scotland is (fairly remarkably, really) the UK’s second-most-read politics blog, behind the hardcore right-wing “Guido Fawkes”.
Our “competitor” isn’t a site we look at a lot – the comments make the Daily Mail readership seem like enlightened and thoughtful moderates – but last week someone asked us about a smear piece they’d run on SNP MP Corri Wilson, and we only just remembered today to check it out. Our initial findings weren’t well received.
It seems that Mr Fawkes and his minions aren’t too keen on scrutiny themselves.
Sven on Just Good Friends: ““If you choose bad companions, no one will believe that you are anything but bad yourself.” Aesop’s Fables.” Jul 10, 13:10
Mark Beggan on Just Good Friends: “The Myra Hindley of Politics.” Jul 10, 12:58
Liz on Just Good Friends: “I was at one of those Burns suppers back in the day. I’m sure one of the guest comedians was…” Jul 10, 12:56
TURABDIN on Just Good Friends: “WE, THE PROGRESSIVES’ — runs the argument — ‘are the wise and good; we know what reforms the world needs;…” Jul 10, 12:35
Casper1066 on Just Good Friends: “Birds of a feather…….” Jul 10, 12:23
Rev. Stuart Campbell on Just Good Friends: “Oh my word that’s extraordinary. Just grabbing it before it vanishes, will edit it in when I’ve got it.” Jul 10, 12:22
Confused on Too Tight To Mention: “the anglos always were pirates, it’s in their DNA “wherever wood floats, you will find an englishman, stealing all he…” Jul 10, 12:09
Confused on Just Good Friends: “I would love to get the full story on Leeza Lawrence demise; total radio silence. I am thinking … chemsex…” Jul 10, 12:09
Confused on Too Tight To Mention: “We have a lot of formorian sea devils on this forum. Have you guys not worked it out yet? -…” Jul 10, 12:07
Brotyboy on Just Good Friends: “If you’d seen the 2 trannies on the plane yesterday you’d not be saying TWAW. No self respecting woman would…” Jul 10, 11:59
sarah on Just Good Friends: “Well analysed and informative, Lorn. Thank you.” Jul 10, 11:58
Lorn on Just Good Friends: “For starters, we do not know that Iain Robertson is actually guilty of anything. Innocent men have been arrested and…” Jul 10, 11:42
sarah on Just Good Friends: “Haha! Excellent, robertknight!” Jul 10, 11:39
robertkknight on Just Good Friends: “In a remarkable coincidence, Sturgeon (acipenseridae) are also bottom feeders. Fancy that!” Jul 10, 11:36
Anon A Mouse on Just Good Friends: “Of course, Iain famously laid on a Burns Supper for the SNP in Glasgow where Nicola was the guest of…” Jul 10, 11:23
sarah on Just Good Friends: ““same face grinning in the background…”. “Foreground”, surely, Rev?” Jul 10, 11:14
James Cheyne on Too Tight To Mention: “It has been argued that the old members of the old Scottish parliament joined the new parliament of Great Britain,…” Jul 10, 10:48
Shug on Just Good Friends: “You can understand why the Swinney’s of this world did not speak up. She must have beed an absolute bitch…” Jul 10, 10:38
Southernbystander on Too Tight To Mention: “The British and Anglo-Saxon are not synonymous. I am sure you know this. But you often use the term Anglo-Saxon…” Jul 10, 10:20
duncanio on Just Good Friends: “Surely not another case of hiding in plain sight. “Think about it”.” Jul 10, 10:17
James Cheyne on Too Tight To Mention: “The devolved Scottish parliament can only be referred to as a subsidiary parliament of England and Wales under the introduced…” Jul 10, 10:07
James Cheyne on Too Tight To Mention: “Worthless Treaties. Un-democratic voting for Scots. The other half of the treaty of union down south after much discussion decided…” Jul 10, 09:51
James on Too Tight To Mention: “Cheers, YL. They don’t like it up ’em. LOL” Jul 10, 08:50
James Cheyne on Too Tight To Mention: “Undemocratic elections, Rigged elections for Scots. They knew they should give the Scots a vote ‘they” had discussed it in…” Jul 10, 08:41
twathater on Too Tight To Mention: “It never ceases to amaze me how many fuckwits actually think they are in the same rich league as these…” Jul 10, 03:05
Young Lochinvar on Too Tight To Mention: “Wow! Did the paramedics get to you in time and are you alright? Would have sent you a posse of…” Jul 10, 02:06
Young Lochinvar on Too Tight To Mention: “That I believe would be the Celtic mythical Tuatha de Danann, the Celtic equivalent of the Gods of Mount Olympus.…” Jul 10, 01:48
Young Lochinvar on Too Tight To Mention: “Reply to Chas @ 8.26 Oi Chas Leave James alone! It’s me that goes fishing and frankly, it’s no-one here’s…” Jul 10, 01:38
Young Lochinvar on Too Tight To Mention: “Well that would be you P3nisbreath; posting about “sucking blokes off” (your post), shafting blokes between “spread bum cheeks” (your…” Jul 10, 01:13