Journalism for the Union: a crash course
Here’s an important statistic: almost 40% of people who look at an online article don’t get beyond the headline and strapline. More and more readers fall away the further down the article you get – by the time you’re just a few hundred words in, you’ve probably lost roughly 70% of people who started reading.
So we’re going to try to keep this really short.
The picture above is as far as a lot of Herald readers will get into the story in question. And that’s why it’s such a good example of the insidious way that newspapers deliberately lie to their audience while being able to maintain that they haven’t actually said anything untrue.
Because Magnus Gardham’s opening paragraph is strictly technically true, especially if read in the context of the entire story (which, remember, it won’t be). To sustain Scotland’s economy at present levels, the country would indeed, on current estimates, need an extra 24,000 people every year compared to its current population.
But that’s not what most people will read.
Most people will see the headline, which talks of an “immigration target” of 24,000, and then they’ll see a line saying “an extra 24,000 people per year”, and they’ll almost certainly put those things together and arrive at the perfectly rational and reasonable conclusion that it means an extra 24,000 immigrants a year, even though in a strict literal sense Magnus Gardham hasn’t said that.
The missing information, provided later in the article where only a minority of people will read it, is that Scotland already grows its population by an average of 22,000 immigrants a year. The real “extra” number, if we’re comparing like with like, is 2000 a year rather than 24,000, which is a lot less scary.
Why is that important? Because the Herald knows that a lot of people aren’t keen on more immigration, because it’s only a few days since they published a big story on the subject. (And that story was written by the same author as today’s.) It also knows the statistics on how readers consume stories, because pretty much everybody even passingly interested in journalism knows them.
So Magnus Gardham knows exactly what he’s doing when he writes that opening paragraph – and that remains the case even if he didn’t write the headline, because he knows full well how people will interpret the word “extra”.
If challenged he can plead innocence, defending himself by saying that he gives all the detail later in the piece, including quotes from the First Minister explaining the whole picture, but he knows most people will never see that bit.
This piece is already longer than ideal. Goodness knows how many are still reading. Some of you swore and clicked away the minute you saw the words “Magnus Gardham”. Some of you stopped reading because you already knew this stuff. Some of you got distracted by a bee or a shiny object. By now we could admit to being Nazi baby-murderers and only a small minority of people would notice.
(NB We are not Nazi baby-murderers.)
But this is how modern journalism works, readers. This is how you’re deliberately and knowingly misled and lied to every day, using only the truth. This is why we explain it over and over and over again. This is why you need to be alert. Because at this point in its history, more than at any other time, Scotland really needs lerts.
Aye that article and its author really pissed me off. If there is anything I hate more than a NO supporting paper, is a NO supporting paper which says it is staying neutral!
So the correct informative statistic is 2,000 and not 24,000. It’s out by a factor of 12 again.
I am beginning to wonder if better together with UKIP plan to drag us out of the EU and also reverse decimalisation.
How do I order dem badges?
For delivery in France and I don’ t like Indigo or Paypal (especially so).
I am sorry, I shall not be reading any more of your pieces, as I stopped reading when you admitted to being Nazi baby-murderers, and didn’t get to the end of the article..
😉
Excellent post, will spread it far and wide…
Also, it’s worth thinking about the sources you look at.
I’ve been reading the opendemocracy site’s “Scotland’s Future” articles and found them to be excellent.
I’d like to take this opportunity to suggest some of you take a look and if you like what you see, think about supporting them here:
https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/scotland-s-conversation-with-the-world
Cheers. 🙂
Oh look a squirrel! 😛
Journalism for what ?
Murray. McCallum
Maybe No Central is populated by chimeroids with 6 fingers on each hand?
BtP
Out on day release.
Forgot to post the link to the articles I was referring to…
http://www.opendemocracy.net/ourkingdom/collections/scotlands-future
🙂
Oh look, even more distracting, a squirrel in a sequined bee costume.
Lerts yes, Gardham no; that we can well do without
Can’t expect anything else from Gardham.
A disgrace to his profession.
FM is asked about immigration, amongst other things, by the BBC yesterday. Obviously he talks about an extra two thousand as the Rev says above. Good watch if you haven’t already seen it.
Ah, Gardham, the man so informed about Scottish Politics that he mulled over the ‘East Lothian Question’ not so long ago in the laughable rag which sees fit to employ him.
‘We are not Nazi baby-murderers’ – Im out!
Oh look, even more distracting, a squirrel in a sequined bee costume
I feel strangely excited :O
As to Magnus, does he ever smile or is the weight of guilt over the mountain of mendacity manure he produces pulling the corners of his mouth down?
I used to be a Nazi baby murderer but I got better.
What is it with these F**kers and their 12x multiplier. Even if they promised me we were goint to be 12x better off in the union i’d still tell them to ram it.
I’m SO glad I stopped buying the Herald (after taking it for a while after I stopped taking the Scotsman).
Have appointment at local surgery today to check my blood pressure, which will be fine because I haven’t read Gardham’ s article.
Hope the Herald will be inundated with letters correcting the “error” (cough).
Maybe I’m just getting more sensitive to the torrent of misinformation currently spewing from London through the sewers of the MSM. But, the Herald seems to have upped its Daily Mail style articles in the past few days.
Coming soon from Gardham and BT:
The story of the 144 days of Christmas, related by the 144 disciples. The story ends with the 24th Coming.
At what age may a baby join a Nazi political Party? Can any Nationality join?
When will the Herald follow the lead of its sister paper and officially come out for “No”? Today’s front page is worthy of the Scotsman.
We should do a BT and have 2 lovely kids as the poster children for the nazi baby murderer party, may i suggest the names of:
‘Arry and Anne
Boom tisch!
OMG! Rev Stu is a nazi baby murderer, he admitted to it!!!
We are clutching at straws here!
Never mind the the first paragraph (technically correct as you say) even more readers (especially online) only read the headlines. That quite accurately reflects the meat of the story. As misleading journalism, this registers quite low on the scale.
Contained also within Alec Salmond’s projection is that Scotland would be aiming to retain its own population and therefore not lose so many of its own working population to emigration.
A prosperous economy would therefore grow its population by holding on to its own graduates and other young people better, because our problem at the moment is not immigration but emigration. We need immigration to grow such an economy in the first place.
But Gardham and others would rather play up to the fears of immigration rather than its benefits.
As the poet Humbert Wolfe wrote:
You cannot hope to bribe or twist,
Thank God, the British journalist.
But seeing what the man will do
Unbribed, there’s no occasion to.
I would have thought even Nazi babies have rights, in an inclusive society. 😉
Didn’t Darling downplay the oil reserves by a factor of 12 recently as well?
Surely Wings readers aren’t so fickle that you need to put a disclaimer at the bottom of the article. Then again we may see the headline in some unionist newspapers, “Cybernats nasty Nazi baby murderers” with huge indepth story below, which in no way matches the headline.
@Phil Robertson
Is it hard going wearing that Helmet of Doom?
The SNP MUST in my opinion send an open letter to The Herald (and put on its website) explaining the extra 2,000 not 24,000.
Don’t worry, Rev, anyone who saw Magnus Gardham and read no further will immediately have recognised that there was something off about the headline… because it was Magnus Gardham and his approach is lame misdirection with, as you’ve pointed out, clarification of the reality so far down the article most people won’t read it.
It’s also hard to get the full story when only the first couple of paragraphs are shown and the rest is blocked by their paywall. (No, I will not contribute to that rags coffers!)
O/T on a side note, I picked up a copy of the Glenrothes Gazette today. (Looking for the Jobs section, which was woefully inadequate), and lo and behold, a full page advert for BT’s Best of both worlds rubbish & that nasty piece of fiction The Facts you Need, stuck in the middle. Quick look to see who the paper owner is. Johnstone Press. No surprise there then!
(No yes ads in it at all! Shocking!)
Everytime I see his happy face in the corner of a Herald article I’m reminded of ‘Mr Logic’ from Viz
http://gingerrrama.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/screen-shot-2011-11-15-at-6-23-44-pm.png?w=830
O/T Rev.
I do apologise.
This is a welcome report by the European Policy Centre (EPC) think tank. They state that no EU member would have a material interest in Scotland being outside the EU. The report goes on to say that it could cause a legal nightmare for other member states, not include Scotland.
SNP, MEP Alyn Smith said the report, is a breath of fresh air.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-politics-27623271
Also, the moderation on comments is ridiculous. I posted at least 6 comments pointing out the bloody obvious, 22,000 from 24,000 = 2,000! et al. to find every single one deleted!
The mods got another reply in the end, it went like this.
“Thanks Moderators for demonstrating your unbiased judgement. (I know this won’t get through because NONE of my comments have)
In the interests of fair, open and honest facts and statistics, i have pointed out inaccuracies in your article on a number of posts now. You have deemed to be the guardians of such facts and have such deleted every last one of them. I am sorely disappointed by your very selective and biased side to this debate. You have removed perfectly acceptable comments because they go against the heart of the story. You have removed comments which have directly challenged the blatant racist attitude of some commenters who you have deemed to be appropriate for this thread. I thank you for showing your true agenda to me and others. (Yes I have been sharing these comments on Social Media, and will again do the same with this one.) So many thanks for showing your true, biased colours. I hope you’re proud.”
Pick out a minority, make them the enemy, then use them for political attack. Oldest trick out there and of ourse BetterTogether UKOK are trying desperately to use it.
We just have to accept that the owners of the Great British media are neo fascists completely determined to anihalate Scottish democracy via their lackies like Cardham.
It does raise the old ethical conundrum – would you kill Hitler as a baby?
Anyway, back on-topic, the BBC did something similar with their article on the cost of independence. Took them several paragraphs to get to Dunleavy’s comments, and even then it only took up one line. They have also written a full article about the misuse of his figures, but I’ll give a shiny sixpence to anyone who can actually find it without using a search-engine. Completely missing from the “Scotland” page, the “Politics” page, the “Scotland Decides” page.
It’s almost as if they’re trying to completely bury it.
It’s called playing the race/immigration card without appearing to do so. Witness Murphy playing it last night on the so called debate on Scotland Tonight.
Watch it from 10 minutes in.
http://player.stv.tv/programmes/scotland-tonight/
The correct strapline should read
“Scotland will require a net migration level 24,000 per annum, an increase of 2,000 above current levels.”
It isn’t hard to be concise and accurate. That the Herald or the Guardian, or whoever, do not seem to be able to do this suggests either low levels of literacy or deliberate spin (or both).
I keep a lert. My current one is two years old. The last one sadly passed away aged fourteen.
Lerts make wonderful pets they don’t cost much to feed and they are easy to train. In fact due to present circumstances I am considering getting another lert and possibly breeding them.
Baby lerts, free to a good home!
Wasn’t the 24000 to be made up of a combination of immigration, reduced emigration, increased visa rights for overseas students already studying here and encouraging repatriation of those who have emigrated previously?
Sounds even less scary like that.
I wonder if Mr Marr will interview Mr Avery about his report.
*Ha Ha Ha – rang the hollow laughter.*
Hey! That Lert joke is mine! I have been telling it for 35 years, with limited success mind 🙂
The BBC have uploaded a poll tracker that lets you see all the independence polls by all the poll companies over the last 12 months. Typically, they all put no ahead, Hmm! who’d have thought it.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-27585557
rab_the_doubter – ‘What is it with these F**kers and their 12x multiplier.’
Is cos it’s turning it up one higher than 11? 🙂
So long as Lerts don’t attack budgies then you can put me down for one, or possibbly two, TMitJ. Not sure how to break the news to my partner that we might be receiving one or two Lerts soon though. 😛
Nick says: Hey! That Lert joke is mine! I have been telling it for 35 years, with limited success mind 🙂
I used to tell that joke too mind you, until that time I was in Paris and it fell into the river as it was clearly ‘insane’.
I want a badge, but one that’s an enamel pin. Can’t be done with those round pin badges that look as though a 5 year old made them!
Cardham selects out Polish people immigrating to Scotland in particular –
“However, critics pointed out the years from 2001 to 2011 witnessed higher than usual levels of immigration as Poles and other new EU nationals gained the right to move to Scotland.”
Ciritics target Polish people now do they Cardham? It’s interesting that his fellow UKOK creep Severin Carrell of vote NO Guardian, also targeted Polish people in South Side Glasgow last week as being a “problem” for working class Glasgow.
Wonder why these two UKOK reprobates are picking out Poles like this and why now?
Is ‘Alert Reader’ a relation of Eddi?
Sky News said the exact same thing yesterday, “the Unionist say Scotland will need to grow its population by 24,000 over the next 20 years”, the reporter added “thats the size of Edinburgh!” as if to emphasise the impossible task. The reporter went on to say “the Yes campaign, they don’t suggest how they’ll manage to do that”. A gross misrepresentation of the facts.
You can watch the video here, its on the right of the page by Ed Conway.
http://news.sky.com/story/1270290/political-battle-over-who-can-make-scots-richer
Of course you’re right, and Gard’em is doing what it says on his own tin badge. The reassurance comes in the fact that the headline comes under two big warnings. One is that the paper/website is called the Herald and the other is that he’s Magnus Gard’em. Therefore if you’re a lert, you know that 70% of the column is 100% garbage and the other fallacious – I donno – 40% you already got spattered with that morning by Auntie Gary and his chums.
Lertness is next to Godliness. (Ministry of Stu)
They do seem to like this 12x table – it’s one of those things they’ve learned at school (probably very well) and are determined to find a use for.
Maybe it’s a big political union journo in-joke – every number you state in a story this month has to be multiplied by 12. Next month it’ll be dropping song titles into stories
Andy-B at 3:24
Are you sure the polls are over 12 months, not just last month with the usual multiplier applied!
Using a x12 multiplier all the time is a cunning trick – they know that in skools they only do up to the x10 table now so people under 40 will be bamboozled and not make the connection. Bring back LSD I say.
@ Major – So you were in Continent then?
I did like the Stuart Lee clip that was going around taking the rip out of UKIP
“Those Poles..coming over here…fixing things we have broken.”
Bring back LSD I say
Reading the BT stuff I would say they already have.
Seems they are getting worried over at the BBC…they really are trying everything to make sure it’s a No vote.
Poll trackers which are aimed at deflating the Yes support and turning off any undecideds that would like to see it happen but lack the necessary testicular fortitude.
When you begin from the premise the Union is the best of all possible worlds it tends to stop halt curiousity.
Stating Scotland needs 24,000 immigrants a year is a much of the truth as is necessary to stay comfortable with your prejudices.
Archie [not Erchie] says: @ Major – So you were in Continent then?
No, I’m not, definitely not, and haven’t been since I fell into a river in Egypt.
Which river Major? The Pelusiac, the Tanitic, the Mendesian, the Phatnitic (extant; now the Damietta or Damyat), the Sebennytic, the Bolbitinic, or the Canopic? 🙂
@MajorBloodnok
I used to love seeing old maps of Glasgow which showed an area in the East End called Egypt.
Ahh bisto!
Nice one (dozen) by Training Day at 2:37! If Gardham did pop music – his fave song would be the Byrds’ “96 Miles High”, or maybe Stan Ridgway’s Vietnam protest song “228”, or Gene Pithey’s “288 Hours From Tulsa”. 🙂
All who run these “newpapers” are going to feel, and made to feel, complete toss pots after a YES!
“Bring back LSD I say”
“Reading the BT stuff I would say they already have.”
Perhaps while they were rooting about in the bottom of Blair McDougals tuba case looking for some spare change left over from his busking days. Could they have found some of that “bad acid” that was going around back in 69.
That would explain a hell of a lot!
My Friend Moira is so sick of the media bias that she will be heading through to Pacific Quay on Sunday at Noon to let them know what she thinks of them. Apparently the yes Bus will be there too! I wish that I could join her as she fears that she might be the only person there but I have a prior commitment any one want to take my place? Oh aye If you go take a copy of the Sunday Herald!
For those who missed it here’s Blair Jenkins taking on expenses scandal Labour MP Jim Murphy.
http://news.stv.tv/scotland/276959-blair-jenkins-and-jim-murphy-answer-questions-from-undecided-voters/
@ Dr Ew says
“I used to be a Nazi baby murderer but I got better.”
You murdered baby Nazis?
@major Bloodknock
Sounds like you are in de nial
The Scottish Daily Mail and Express headlines today are also pretty nasty Salmond attacks totally ignoring the fact that the Treasury’s sums are discredited (which would be a genuine cause for alarm in any normal democracy).
What would be handy is a list of the tricks to look out for in newspapers, radio and TV so that ordinary viewers, readers and listeners can be aware of the nasty little games being played every day. e.g. quoting dubious sources (or none at all), leading with the bad news for YES then asking a YES spokesperson to react to that, interrupting and contradicting, only showcasing the NO camp, repeating known lies and misinformation, ad hominem attacks, personalising the YES camp as only about Alex Salmond, mis representing the question,etc.
I have a Herald subscription and when I saw that headline this morning I knew exactly what to expect. What worries me most is that so-called responsible journalists would play the race card (for that is what it is). I have been thinking for a while that the Herald’s obvious bias is going to drive me away. That day is very close.
Major Bloodnok,
Glad you weren’t a-nile-ated.
@CameronB
No, no, no, no, no, no and …er… no.
@desimond
And of course there is an area of Glenrothes called Macedonia. (Don’t tell the Serbs).
ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ
If I see that Gardham has penned the article, or one of his drones have penned it for him, I go immediately to the comments and derive my entertainment from them.
Gardham is neither informative or entertaining.
A lot of the comment on Herald political articles is more cogent and informative than the crap they’re commenting on.
The Hootsman is a lost cause.
Only Lerts and cockroaches will survive after a Nuclear holocost apparently.
Wiki on Lerts.
Lerts are common to Scotland but are not found much outwith it’s borders. They are difficult to spot and are often mistaken for squirrels. Their high level of intelligence is well documented and it’s been noted that Lerts often show up in groups when bullshit is on the ground.
Their favoured food is bullshit and they recycle it better than most, when bullshit is in short supply they generally have to survive on pish.
Lert numbers are on the increase due to the preponderance of bullshit currently prevalent in Scotland. The UK government has debated culling them but so far has not came up with a method deemed to be acceptable to the general public.
Unless something is done soon to contain the levels of bullshit available Scotland faces the prospect of being overrun by Lerts.
desimond says:
29 May, 2014 at 4:02 pm
@MajorBloodnok
“I used to love seeing old maps of Glasgow which showed an area in the East End called Egypt”
Egypt was between Tollcross and Auchenshuggle, ah, there”s a name to conjure with.
You Bomber Harris?
This campaign has been a real eye opener for me into the tricks the media use to spin the facts. At the start I used to read the headlines and think that, for many articles was enough. Then I learned that frequently Headlines often told a different story to the main body. And now Stu tells me about how readers fall away as the story progresses. I always knew vaguely that that was the case because I fell away often myself. Also I can’t be bothered to read long winded expositions in newspaper articles and I avoid writers who do that.
On the bright side I now know how to ‘spin’ the comments I write supporting Indy and I often do so.
How do you know a nazi baby? and even if you did would murder rather than education be a good idea?
🙂
I prefer to be aloof; there are too many lerts around this place.
There are times I can’t help but wonder if my university lecturer was right when he advocated that you shouldn’t be able to vote unless you had an IQ above a certain level. Maybe people shouldn’t be allowed to fill in their ballot in the referendum until they have read a balanced paper on the pros and cons of becoming independent and passed an oral or written exam showing they have understood the information they have been given. They can have as many goes as they need, but a minimum level of understanding of the issues surely isn’t too much to ask. Is it?
NB. I am joking folks. “Democracy is the worst form of government, except for all those other forms that have been tried from time to time.” W. Churchill, MP
Muscleguy
How do you know a nazi baby?
He’s wearing a little black moustache?
(Okay, I’ll get my coat.)
bjsalba says:
I put this up on another thread but it is apropos here
Read the piece about the BBC poll tracker and went immediately to my favourite Dissect the poll site
http://scotgoespop.blogspot.co.uk/
Item entitled
Problems with the BBC referendum poll tracker
Comments thus
When you first visit the page, all you can see is the ICM tracker, and yet there is no explanation offered that you’re only looking at polls from one company – casual visitors will be forgiven for assuming that they’re looking at a graph showing all the polls from the campaign so far.
@major
If you’ve not “been” since then, don’t worry you’re not pregnant. Best get down to an old folks home, they can do wonders with a catheter.
Yep, I saw the headlines of the Daily Mail, Express and the Times at the supermarket and of course they were totally misrepresenting the speechs from yesterday ( Salmond Bad-Salmond Wrong-Salmond has paperclips ???) basicly they were barefaced lying bastards and they didn’t care about it.
The MSM and the BBC are just exactly the rotten lying trash we already speak about.
You have to wonder about the cause Magnus Gardham is fighting for. Do you think he ever has moments of doubt, whether this Union is worth breaking every principle of honest journalism?
Whether his status, his standing in his job, his reputation means so little to him that he can so willingly and repeatedly distort the truth for this crusade against the independence of this country.
Does he expect some form of recompense at the end of it all with a No vote? Is he under pressure from above?
We are blessed in Scotland with a healthy attitude by and large to immigrants.
Maybe it is because so many of our brothers and sisters, sons and daughters have emigrated to find work. It is not an unbreakable tolerance, and to pander to the very worst fears of the population by distorting the figures is risible.
Can someone ask this guy how he sleeps at night having slunk so low. Or simply for an explanation to this blatant misrepresentation of the truth – the polar opposite of what his profession should be all about!
People just stop reading, and turn off, full stop.
Readership plummeting. Ground hog Day everyday for ill informed, ‘journalists’. No one believes a word.
@Tam.
Magnus isn’t a journalist. He is a spook. Once you understand why certain folk occupy the positions they do, everything becomes clear.
Juteman
OK – I’m pretty naive about these things. So you are suggesting he is being paid as some kind of agent by the state. It would, as you say, make everything clear, and I could believe it of many high ranking unionists in the press and in the BBC.
That is a dangerous game to play of course. It would work as long as the line is never breached. I recall they have been caught bang to rights before (that ridiculous spy-rock in Russia springs to mind) and a balls-up would throw the whole game.
The alternative, that this son of Grimsby just believes so passionately in the union that he has shed the last of his integrity like a snakeskin seems preposterous. The only other motivation could be money… but then that’s a strange kind of game to get into to make money.
I’ve got his email address- maybe I should just come out and ask him? But then, I’m a vile cybernat so the most rational, reasonable question would in fact simply be abuse.
I am sure we will have an immigration policy, hopefully like Australias
Tam jardine,if you’re going to ask such questions,be sure not to drive around the highlands alone!
Well put together, Stu.
I have often thought, when I read a full article in the MSM, that wasn’t too bad … there were some good balanced points here and there. I must confess, with hindsight, that ‘here and there’ was probably actually near the end!
Of course, you are correct, it’s all propaganda technique. The nasty headline and the negative bit first – then the balance later. In most cases the reader gets just the negative bits. If challenged the writer can claim no bias.
Clever, but utterly obscene.
The more I think of articles I’ve read, the more I realise this is so common. Thanks for opening my eyes to this!
Andy Smith
Could you no have posted that warning about 15 minutes earlier! One click, and away she goes!!
@Juteman
You will be familiar with the expression “useful fool.” The place is crawling with the inadequate scum and has been for years.
Everybody knows at least one.
Jesus H Christ. Gardham appears to be cast in the role of neutral observer on Scotland Tonight between Pia and the rep from women for independence.
We’re way through the looking glass here.
Marcus Gardham was once the Daily Record’s anti SNP Hatchet man but always gave Labour glowing reports.
I have bought The Herald every day for most of my adult life but I am getting very close to stopping. The point the Rev makes about readers tailing off from an article, is extremely relevant which is why headlines are important.
I do not mind reading unbiased articles that criticise independence, it’s a personal viewpoint and both sides should respect the rights of others to hold an opposing view.
It is not being pro-union that is putting me off the press it is the sheer one sidedness and twisted narrative that is forcing many to turn to the internet, which it must be said is not a paragon of virtue.
Stu
You forgot to highlight the fact that you have to subscribe to read the full article and if you don’t you only get to read the first paragraph anyway.