Just for you mate,

Thank god it’s not in the Right Column

Have you had your letter yet to go for a Medical?

Then don’t worry all thanks to your caring compassionate Liberal Democrat/Conservative coalition you will be getting one soon. Don’t get me wrong there are many who are screwing the system. But the one i visited yesterday well i look forward to his results. H

I read this in the Mirror, for 12 months i sat in fear of what we would have to face if the Tories came to power sadly it’s all coming true.

Maggie Thatcher on parade at the scene of her political and economic crimes sent a chill down the spines of millions of Britons.

A Prime Minister who once posed as the cuddly Heir to Blair has finally come out as the Son of Thatcher.

When David Cameron no longer feels the need to hide his admiration for the Rusty Lady we should brace ourselves for the Tory equivalent of a plague of locusts devouring Biblical lands.

Returning to the 1980s was entertaining when DCI Gene Hunt took us for a ride in his Audi Quattro with Soft Cell in the background.

There’ll be only tears when PM Cameron raises the ghosts of Thatcherism: mass unemployment, rundown schools, ailing hospitals, strikes and riots.

Labour MP John McDonnell’s honest enough to admit his quip about wanting to go back and “assassinate Thatcher” for what she did.

But I’m old enough to know Cameronomics rooted in Thatcherism will be no joke for hard-working families.

The Labour Government was imperfect yet it’ll be sorely missed when the Conservatives and the useful idiots of the Liberal Democrats rampage through the public services.

To slash £60bn and one million jobs would be to repeat the horrors of the 1980s.

Poverty exploded under Thatcher, with inequality soaring.In that decade US economist JK Galbraith’s phrase “private affluence and public squalor” could’ve been coined for our country.

Yuppies and City kids squandered riches while the jobless denied hope chucked themselves off bridges.

It was impossible to find a school without a leaky roof. Hospital corridors were stacked with patients on trolleys waiting for beds.

Cameron will take us back to the future, a quack politican who wilfully prescribes bloodletting for an economy on the mend after a financial heart attack.

He risks stifling economic recovery in pursuit of the discredited, outdated ideology of his heroine.

Labour would’ve cut if it had won but Gordon Brown wouldn’t slash with the glee and speed of Cameron.

The ConDem’s spin about opening the books to find the public finances are worse than he feared is a contemptible lie.

Borrowing is £19bn less – that’s less, not more – than Labour Chancellor Alistair Darling predicted.

If the economy slides into a fresh recession, the dreaded double dip feared by economists, we’ll know who to blame.

The guilty man will be David Cameron, the ConDem axeman who knew the price of everything and the value of nothing.

How To Detect Bias In News Media

Media have tremendous power in setting cultural guidelines and in shaping political discourse. It is essential that news media, along with other institutions, are challenged to be fair and accurate. The first step in challenging biased news coverage is documenting bias. Here are some questions to ask yourself about newspaper, TV and radio news.

Who are the sources?

Be aware of the political perspective of the sources used in a story. Media over-rely on “official” (government, corporate and establishment think tank) .

To portray issues fairly and accurately, media must broaden their spectrum of sources. Otherwise, they serve merely as megaphones for those in power

Is there a lack of diversity?

What is the race and gender diversity at the news outlet you watch compared to the communities it serves?

Demand that the media you consume reflect the diversity of the public they serve. Call or write media outlets every time you see an all-male or all-white panel of experts discussing issues that affect women and people of colour.

From whose point of view is the news reported?

Political coverage often focuses on how issues affect politicians or corporate executives rather than those directly affected by the issue.

Demand that those affected by the issue have a voice in coverage.

Are there double standards?

Do media hold some people to one standard while using a different standard for other groups?

Expose the double standard by coming up with a parallel example or citing similar stories that were covered differently.

Educate journalists about misconceptions involved in stereotypes,

Is the language loaded?

When media adopt loaded terminology, they help shape public opinion.

Demonstrate how the language chosen gives people an inaccurate impression of the issue, program or community.

Is there a lack of context?

Coverage of so-called “reverse discrimination” usually fails to focus on any of the institutional factors which gives power to prejudice—such as larger issues of economic inequality and institutional racism. Coverage of hate speech against gays and lesbians often fails to mention increases in gay-bashing and how the two might be related.

Provide the context. Communicate to the journalist, or write a letter to the editor that includes the relevant information. See if it’s used.

Do the headlines and stories match?

Usually headlines are not written by the reporter. Since many people just skim headlines, misleading headlines have a significant impact.

Call or write the newspaper and point out the contradiction.

Are stories on important issues featured prominently?

Look at where stories appear. Newspaper articles on the most widely read pages (the front pages and the editorial pages) and lead stories on television and radio will have the greatest influence on public opinion.

It may not effect you directly but it does affect people trying to fight for you. If a one sided view is maintained  and minority views are not allowed in any form then we are heading on a  down hill  slope. Of course if you look at a political point of view for example in Salford what would  happen if issues that effect you where not highlighted, the only way this is possible is by fair and open press coverage.Sadly within Salford you will only get the views of the main stream parties,independent groups will not be allowed the same rights. You would have seen during the elections how main stream groups covered most of the local papers pages. I suffered at one point by being placed next to one article even though my name was not mentioned in the article with the headline can you trust the independents. i mean what would you think if you where not into politics and read  that for the first time? how would you vote.no excuses i lost fairly but the article would not help any one fighting the big three. What made it worse i contacted the paper to offer a comment in response and surprise nothing i had to fight to get it in after most people had already voted. Power of the press? sadly it is a very powerfull tool and if you can’t use it you will suffer.

Well my sources tell me the market holders will be offered new terms

Well i hope they can afford any new rents that will be set,sadly more could have been done to prevent what is nothing more than a shambles. Why we can’t attract people to the central hub of our city baffles me. Poor planing greed by the centre owners or just poor leadership from our council. Any views on the decline of the precinct centre?

wow i have just been branded a leftie .

Really not sure how to take that, i better not print the rest.

Just had twenty thousand badges made with don’t blame me i never vote Tory on.

Any takers? maybe not yet but i bet they should soon all sell out. Any one want to be the first

Should journalist disclose their political persuasions?

That would be interesting.Yes i know it would not be right or fair, But good fun all the same. Any views?

Media bias

 refers to the bias of journalists and news producers within the mass media, in the selection of which events and stories are reported and how they are covered. The term “media bias” usually implies a pervasive or widespread bias contravening the standards of journalism, rather than the perspective of an individual journalist or article. The direction and degree of media bias in various countries is widely disputed.

Practical limitations to media neutrality include the inability of journalists to report all available stories and facts, and the requirement that selected facts be linked into a coherent narrative (Newton 1989). Since it is impossible to report everything, some selectivity is inevitable. Government influence, including overt and covert censorship, biases the media in some countries. Market forces that can result in a biased presentation include the ownership of the news source, concentration of media ownership, the selection of staff, the preferences of an intended audience, and pressure from advertisers.

There are a number of national and international watchdog groups that report on bias in the media.

Interesting topic,i mean could you imagine if there was a country or a city for example where the papers only reported on the party in power, the media as to be one of the most obvious ways of political groups to get out there message ,once you starve that source you have serious issues. How for example would activist or people trying to get accross a message to the public  survive. Over the coming months and years this city and this country will be ripped apart, many working class sections, sick and the aged will suffer. how will local activist highlight these issues if starved of their right to highlight them? of course many local politician would love the idea only their views are being reported to the masses. Over the coming months i will be putting messages out accross the streets in Salford by leaflets,and the Internet. People like Steve Kingston will probably agree how funding can stop his work, i would be happy with fair reporting and equality in our local Rag but that will never be, so if there is to be change it will have to be from the ground up, One of my colleagues this week will be seeking a view from the owners of our local paper i wait with baited breath for the answer.I was informed yesterday by a senior reporter there has been movement in the editorial section of the advertiser.Perhaps the editor who ever that is this week would care to comment, but all i could say on that point is not to hold any hope.

Fantastic News

I see the Local Liberal Democrats are taking up the cudgels over speeding, We may disagree on most things but not this, if there is a petition put me down i hope the leader of there  group is fully supportive of the petition. I am always amazed how people do not take this issue of speeding seriously.