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BBC Leftist Bias?

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    allafixallafix Posts: 20,690
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    pxd867 wrote: »
    They're hardly going to realise an official statement admitting they were biased are they?
    Exactly, but jmclaugh keeps telling us they have done just that.

    Anyway why issue a statement like that which would clearly be false?
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    allafixallafix Posts: 20,690
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    CLL Dodge wrote: »
    The drama & entertainment departments are left wing. News is jingisitic pro-establishment lies.
    Drama and entertainment generally is left wing or at the least liberal with a small "l". A lot of what the BBC produces in that area is independently produced, by companies who also work for ITV, C4, etc.
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    Biffo the BearBiffo the Bear Posts: 25,859
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    allafix wrote: »
    Drama and entertainment generally is left wing or at the least liberal with a small "l". A lot of what the BBC produces in that area is independently produced, by companies who also work for ITV, C4, etc.

    Exactly - drama and entertainment revolves around depictions of normal life with normal people. And normal people don't usually stand around moaning about immigrants, 'leftists' and learning the Daily Mail ad verbatim; that's usually the boorish idiot in the pub that everyone agrees with just to shut them up.
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    [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 12,725
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    Josquius wrote: »
    Labour are hardly left wing.
    V for Vendetta was quite specifically based on an exagerated Thatcherism.

    I did like that film. :)
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    MajlisMajlis Posts: 31,362
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    allafix wrote: »
    So you keep claiming. However the BBC have never, to my knowledge, admitted to political bias.
    pxd867 wrote: »
    They're hardly going to realise an official statement admitting they were biased are they?

    Er.....:D

    "The BBC was "massively" biased against Margaret Thatcher and journalists allowed their left-wing politics to set the corporation's agenda, director-general Mark Thompson has admitted."

    linky
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    MesostimMesostim Posts: 52,864
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    Majlis wrote: »
    Er.....:D

    "The BBC was "massively" biased against Margaret Thatcher and journalists allowed their left-wing politics to set the corporation's agenda, director-general Mark Thompson has admitted."

    linky

    Er.... :D

    She resigned in 1990... 20 years ago.

    linky
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    MajlisMajlis Posts: 31,362
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    Mesostim wrote: »
    Er.... :D

    She resigned in 1990... 20 years ago.

    Er....:D


    I was replying to this:

    "However the BBC have never, to my knowledge, admitted to political bias."

    Try and keep up...;)
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    xxtimboxxtimbo Posts: 8,877
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    There must be some organization or movement out there dedicated to exposing the BBC
    It is the worlds biggest gravy train
    it is corrupt
    it is getting literally billions to make sleaze and corrupt the people
    It is using coercion to get its money
    pay up or face prison
    I dont watch bbc news I dont want to see the BBC s spin on events
    It is a sick joke, an organization out of its time, past its sell by date... an annomaly in this multi channel , commercial world we live in.
    Johnathan Dross .. that sleazeball sums up the BBC ...... getting paid 3 million a year for sleaze and dross.
    In time I thought Maggie would have got round to privatizing that gravy train, but she was knifed in the back before she had a chance.
    Cameron, hamstrung with his mad coalition is hardly going to do anything.
    It looks like the BBC will roll on for many years yet with its obscene salaries and inflation proof pensions... its sleazy presenters....
    One day the public will wake up to the fact that they are being crapped on from a very great height.
    Privatize the BBC ... now and get them off our backs !
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    redtuxredtux Posts: 1,241
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    xxtimbo wrote: »
    There must be some organization or movement out there dedicated to exposing the BBC
    It is the worlds biggest gravy train
    it is corrupt
    it is getting literally billions to make sleaze and corrupt the people
    It is using coercion to get its money
    pay up or face prison
    I dont watch bbc news I dont want to see the BBC s spin on events
    It is a sick joke, an organization out of its time, past its sell by date... an annomaly in this multi channel , commercial world we live in.
    Johnathan Dross .. that sleazeball sums up the BBC ...... getting paid 3 million a year for sleaze and dross.
    In time I thought Maggie would have got round to privatizing that gravy train, but she was knifed in the back before she had a chance.
    Cameron, hamstrung with his mad coalition is hardly going to do anything.
    It looks like the BBC will roll on for many years yet with its obscene salaries and inflation proof pensions... its sleazy presenters....
    One day the public will wake up to the fact that they are being crapped on from a very great height.
    Privatize the BBC ... now and get them off our backs !

    drivel and no there is no movement because to paraphrase Winston Churchill
    The BBC is the worst setup for a public service broadcaster ... except for anything else
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    redtuxredtux Posts: 1,241
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    allafix wrote: »
    Drama and entertainment generally is left wing or at the least liberal with a small "l". A lot of what the BBC produces in that area is independently produced, by companies who also work for ITV, C4, etc.

    And not just in this country, the vast majority of quality US shows can be seen as having a liberal viewpoint

    eg:
    B5
    Star Trek (especially - marxist society anyone)
    Friends
    Big Bang Theory
    How I met your Mother
    Law and Order
    West Wing

    even most cop shows nowadays could hardly be described as right-wing
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    WelrodWelrod Posts: 110
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    I don't understand why this is even a debate. Even the BBC's director general has said (and I quote) they have a "massive left wing bias"

    Several reports by the BBC have found a bias.

    They have never done anything about this bias. The only report they suppressed and fought tooth and nail to stop being released to the public, was the report about their middle east coverage. It's widely believed to show a strong anti-Israel bias and the BBC was terrified of being exposed over one of its pet issues.

    They spent £250,000 of our money in the courts to block it.

    The request to view it was under the freedom of informations act. The BBC blocked it. Now, which organisation is one of the most stringent supporters of the freedom of informations act? - oh yeah, the BBC.

    Not only do they use our money to stop a report about their bias, but they then claim it's not in the public interest even though we bloody pay for them.

    The BBC is a sick organisation that needs root and branch treatment to rid it of the left wing stranglehold.
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    redtuxredtux Posts: 1,241
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    In general terms, no the BBC does not have a "bias" in the usual terms

    What it does do, in common with the bulk of public service broadcasters, is broadcast from what it percieves as a "centrist" viewpoint.

    Aside from the fact that what people see as centrist shifts over time (and between countries), BBC/C4 news is probably on the left side while ITV is on the right side of this centrist spectrum.

    So anything to the left or right of this centrist viewpoint does not get unbiased coverage.
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    allafixallafix Posts: 20,690
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    Welrod wrote: »
    I don't understand why this is even a debate. Even the BBC's director general has said (and I quote) they have a "massive left wing bias"
    Any chance of a link for this quote, so we can judge the context? Otherwise "and I quote" is worthless.
    Welrod wrote: »
    Several reports by the BBC have found a bias.
    Links?
    Welrod wrote: »
    They have never done anything about this bias. The only report they suppressed and fought tooth and nail to stop being released to the public, was the report about their middle east coverage. It's widely believed to show a strong anti-Israel bias and the BBC was terrified of being exposed over one of its pet issues.

    They spent £250,000 of our money in the courts to block it.

    The request to view it was under the freedom of informations act. The BBC blocked it. Now, which organisation is one of the most stringent supporters of the freedom of informations act? - oh yeah, the BBC.

    Not only do they use our money to stop a report about their bias, but they then claim it's not in the public interest even though we bloody pay for them.

    The BBC is a sick organisation that needs root and branch treatment to rid it of the left wing stranglehold.
    The BBC anti-Israel? You really should tell this to the anti-Israel people on here who regard the BBC as nothing less than a zionist mouthpiece.

    There is no left wing stranglehold. There is merely a perception of bias. If you are on the right wing you are bound to perceive the neutral BBC as being to the left of your views. Likewise the left will regard the BBC as being to the right. I'd say the BBC was in a difficult position and can't please everyone, especially those who see political bias everywhere.
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    WelrodWelrod Posts: 110
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    redtux wrote: »
    In general terms, no the BBC does not have a "bias" in the usual terms
    .
    The BBC was guilty of a “massive bias to the Left”, director general Mark Thompson has said.

    Head in sand, head in sand, head in sand, head in sand, fingers in ears, fingers in ears, la la la la , there's no way my BBC is biased, fingers in ears...I'm not listening, la la la.......
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    allafixallafix Posts: 20,690
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    Majlis wrote: »
    Er.....:D

    "The BBC was "massively" biased against Margaret Thatcher and journalists allowed their left-wing politics to set the corporation's agenda, director-general Mark Thompson has admitted."

    linky
    You've put that in quotes, as if he said that. Lets see what he actually says:
    Confirming their fears, Mr Thompson said: "In the BBC I joined 30 years ago there was, in much of current affairs, in terms of people's personal politics, which were quite vocal, a massive bias to the left.
    So massive bias back then in their personal politics. That does not equate to what made it to the screen, which in terms of news and current affairs must be impartial according to the BBC charter.
    "The organisation did struggle then with impartiality. And journalistically, staff were quite mystified by the early years of Thatcher."
    Hard to construe this as a bias against Thatcher, as the headline says. Anyone brought up in the more liberal 60s and 70s would have been mystified by Thatcherism, which was a throwback to much less liberal outlook.
    Mr Thompson, who joined the corporation in 1979 as a production trainee, insisted that such bias no longer existed. "Now it is a completely different generation. There is much less overt tribalism among the young journalists who work for the BBC.

    "It is a broader church. The BBC is not a campaigning organisation and can't be, and actually the truth is that sometimes our dispassionate flavour of broadcasting frustrates people who have got very, very strong views, because they want more red meat. Often that plays as bias. People think, 'Why can't they come out and say they are
    ?' And that can play out on left and right."
    Here Thompson paints a picture of the current position, which is surely what is being debated here. What would be the point of a thread which was about alleged BBC bias in 1980.

    The Telegraph then goes on to hint that Carol Thatcher's sacking was related to her being Margaret T's daughter. Nothing to do with an outrageously racist remark then. If the BBC hated MT so much why did they even employ CT at all, and then have to sack her?
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    MajlisMajlis Posts: 31,362
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    allafix wrote: »
    You've put that in quotes, as if he said that. Lets see what he actually says:


    So massive bias back then in their personal politics. That does not equate to what made it to the screen, which in terms of news and current affairs must be impartial according to the BBC charter.

    If it didn't make it to the screen why was he concerned about it?

    Here Thompson paints a picture of the current position, which is surely what is being debated here.

    hang on - you cannot have it both ways. If you are claiming that there was no bias in output in the 80's then how can you claim that the present position is any better?

    Just admit it for once :D
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    TelevisionUserTelevisionUser Posts: 41,417
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    Vellum wrote: »
    Of course the BBC are left wing, its like the Guardian on tv you only need to look at the way it covered the student protests for a clear example.

    Or read this for more

    http://biased-bbc.blogspot.com/

    Wrong Answer! Committed activists and supporters of one party or another are always seeing bias in either the BBC or Sky News when, in reality, none exists except in the eye and paranoia of the beholder.

    There might be occasional lapse in professionalism on the part of one individual reporter or another but, by and large, both BBC News and Sky News do well.

    If anyone's looking for true bias, then look at the rot put out by Russia Today and the total abominations that are CCTV News (China) and Press TV (Iran).
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    allafixallafix Posts: 20,690
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    Majlis wrote: »
    If it didn't make it to the screen why was he concerned about it?
    I didn't say it never made it to the screen, it may well have done at times, I was pointing out that he was talking about their personal political beliefs. Professional broadcasters would have put those aside. Therefore the claim about "massive left wing bias" was not about BBC output, rather about the political persuasion of most BBC employees at the time.
    Majlis wrote: »
    hang on - you cannot have it both ways. If you are claiming that there was no bias in output in the 80's then how can you claim that the present position is any better?

    Just admit it for once :D
    I suspect the difference now is there are more of those on the right in broadcasting now than there were then. Hence less of a left bias in terms of personal beliefs.

    You were the one who distorted Thompson's comments into a false quote to make a point. Isn't that bias? Why don't you admit that?
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    Tulip19Tulip19 Posts: 3,076
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    Josquius wrote: »
    err what? The BBC has a right wing bias.
    Just look at their reporting of the student fees protests. Little on the thousands who turned out, nothing on the 40-odd innocents who were beaten by the police, its all 'OMG, the prince attacked!'

    Exactly this. Although that was common across all media.
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    redtuxredtux Posts: 1,241
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    Welrod wrote: »
    Head in sand, head in sand, head in sand, head in sand, fingers in ears, fingers in ears, la la la la , there's no way my BBC is biased, fingers in ears...I'm not listening, la la la.......

    So you ignore the point because it doesn't fit in with your pre-concieved ideas
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    JohnbeeJohnbee Posts: 4,019
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    It is not possible for normal people to objectively measure the question of whether the BBC is biased to the right or left, because it would mean too much work.

    However there is an important point to be made because it is undoubtedly true that those on the right complain most about the BBC being biased against their views. That point is not to do with wwhetehr the BBC is biased, it is to do with what the people think about the question.

    The Independent TV Commission has conducted an annual survey of audince attitudes to TV and since 1975 it has measured audience perception of political bias on various chennels. It has found, consistently, that the BBC is perceived as biased to the right by more people than think it is biased to the left.

    However, bear in mind that a majority of people think that the BBC is not biased: iit is just that more people think it is biased to the right than to the left.
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    doom&gloomdoom&gloom Posts: 9,051
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    It doesn't take that much effort to work out, just watch The One Show, left-wing propaganda in it's purest form, then there's Eastenders, Casualty, Dr Who, Robin Hood, CBeebies and a long list of children's shows stretching right back to Pigeon Street.
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    allafixallafix Posts: 20,690
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    doom&gloom wrote: »
    It doesn't take that much effort to work out, just watch The One Show, left-wing propaganda in it's purest form, then there's Eastenders, Casualty, Dr Who, Robin Hood, CBeebies and a long list of children's shows stretching right back to Pigeon Street.
    :confused:
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    JosquiusJosquius Posts: 1,514
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    doom&gloom wrote: »
    It doesn't take that much effort to work out, just watch The One Show, left-wing propaganda in it's purest form, then there's Eastenders, Casualty, Dr Who, Robin Hood, CBeebies and a long list of children's shows stretching right back to Pigeon Street.

    Young children however are natural leftists. They love everyone and don't discriminate. :p
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    razorboyrazorboy Posts: 5,831
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    Bias = any opinion that differs from mine:)
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