The BBC

There have now been 5 straight days and nights of Loyalist violence in Northern Ireland, so why isn't this leading the news agenda in Britain? (There's obviously been some coverage, including this by the BBC's @EmmaVardyTV) pic.twitter.com/JPINFOgTNf

— Ian Fraser (@Ian_Fraser) April 6, 2021

I haven't seen nor heard that much coverage of this on the bbc news at all tbh

but apparently even the little bit of bbc coverage is shit

I've seen a bit but it does put the coverage of the anti-policing bill into perspective - a bit too much fucking perspective, to paraphrase Nigel Tufnell. Anyway, the British media have been doing their utmost to avoid reporting on Northern Ireland for 50-odd years, why change now?

It is incredible, in a way, that these are in part protests against the effects of ... wait for it ... Brexit.

Imagine the FBPE people using petrol bombs on Piccadilly!

their blue face-paint tinted passion for the EU was the flame and their oh so twee and humorous pro-EU banner slogans were the bombs!

The hardcore Unionists were the people in NI who voted Brexit!

The fact is this particular community in Ireland (and Scotland) invented 'pwning the libs' - or just pwning in general - and have been doing it for hundreds of years.

The community representatives openly mocked and rejected the all-Ireland working group’s attempts to meet and work together cordially on this.

even while Boris was still reliant on the DUP to prop up the tories it was still pretty clear that he was going to fuck them over on border issues. lol! Enjoy your Festival of Brexit in 2022 lads.

And it should have been clear to them to, and I'm sure it was, God knows they've been fucked over by British politicians often enough, but trying to understand the mindset of that lot is a thankless task.

Northern Ireland First Minister Arlene Foster has criticised the Irish government's all-island forum on Brexit.

Mrs Foster described it as a "grandstanding exercise" and said she had better things to do than be a "lone voice among remoaners".
She has already declined an invite to attend next week's "civic dialogue" event in Dublin.

The forum was established in the wake of the EU referendum result.
"It's a complete grandstanding exercise," said Mrs Foster.
"It will be full of people who quite frankly haven't accepted the referendum result going down to talk about how dreadful it is and how awful it is.
"Mark my words that's exactly what will happen at the grandstanding forum that will come about.
"I'm not going to be a part of that. I am in this to do real business and to have outcomes, not to sit around talking about how dreadful it is."
Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny has said the event will facilitate an all-Ireland conversation among the business community, wider civic society and politicians.

Asked if it would be valuable to put the argument in favour of Brexit to forum delegates, Mrs Foster replied: "To be a lone voice amongst a whole lot of remoaners?
"No thank you - I have better things to do with my time."

The scenes in Northern Ireland have been entirely predictable—and predicted—since 2019. At the heart of the matter is a reality few want to admit: the protocol is imbalanced, implementing, in effect, the nationalist solution to the Brexit border trilemma. https://t.co/ZpEpsj8q6Y

— Tom McTague (@TomMcTague) April 6, 2021

Like seriously, fucking revisionism, I know we all remember that December 2017 clusterfuck.

Nobody listened to Loyalists?

How did that notion get traction?

Loyalists voted DUP. The British PM listened to the representatives of Loyalists - so much so that the British PM was pulled put of a meeting by the DUP - and forced to drop her plans to avoid the Irish sea border. pic.twitter.com/9yv8PMG1AW

— Colm Ó Dóghair (@ColmDore) April 6, 2021

On BBC radio on Wednesday morning, Foster said Sinn Féin was responsible for the unrest. Opposition parties say the tension resulted from Foster’s DUP’s support for the Northern Ireland Protocol in the Brexit deal..

she's even worse than Boris at owning the results of her own appalling leadership choices.

Is that A. Foster statement from now?

She's saying that at the same time that Unionist are protesting (by burning police cars, etc) against the effects of Brexit?

it's from this morning's Today on R4

I'm also frankly surprised to be reminded that Enda Kenny is Taoiseach again (or still). I can't keep up with these rotating characters. Sinn Féin won an national election about a year ago, didn't they, but have been completely shut out of power ever since?

Maybe she should "put the argument in favour of Brexit" to her own "community"? Preferably by going out to address them in the middle of a riot.

Almost expecting to see Van Morrison popping up chucking a molotov at a police van.

Kenny is not Taoiseach, pinefox. That quote is from 2016

We have a fella called Micheál Martin in the job now, although he's not entirely convinced of the fact himself

I'm also frankly surprised to be reminded that Enda Kenny is Taoiseach again (or still). I can't keep up with these rotating characters. Sinn Féin won an national election about a year ago, didn't they, but have been completely shut out of power ever since?

Thanks Number None, I'd heard of Martin, and was confused about Kenny as you can see, and the idea that Foster's statement was from today. I can remember some daft things Kenny said in the past.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/live:bbc_radio_one_relax

👀

ah, the fabled service E. i was wondering what the r was for in the logo but it's right there in the url.

How did the BBC get hold of all my MiniDiscs?

Wait, is this really a whole channel of found sound or something? At the moment it sounds like tropical birds squawking in a forest.

Are they playing the sound of the Eurostar passing through Ashford International later?

That is what’s known as the “barker” and no, it’s merely a piece of placeholder audio that’s there between the time that the transmission chain is set up and the schedule properly begins. The actual programming will be a mix of music and speech, more along the lines of this sort of thing:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p09668p5

I experienced something like this, it must have been over 20 years ago, when - was it XFM, or something? was set up, and I would turn the radio dial and just find birdsong, which I liked, because the programming didn't start for months. I think even taped some of the birdsong.

"Classic FM launched in September 1992, but in the preceeding months, Howard uses the birdsong recordings to test the transmitter network. Millions of listeners heard the continuous broadcast of birdsong, interrupted every 30 minutes by the required statutory announcements, also voiced by Howard. National newspapers began carrying stories about the mysterious sound of birds as media pundits and journalists scrambled to figure out what the real sound of Classic FM was going to be."

there was another channel recently.

2009?
https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2009/jun/03/birdsong-radio-digital-station

as TH says barker channels are usual before the full playout transmission is set up. it’s also useful for basic end to end testing. i’m curious because a team i’ve just inherited is setting up a barker channel next week and now i want to know what sounds they’re using.

Koogs, it must indeed have been Classic FM. Alarmingly long ago!

EXC: Robbie Gibb, Theresa May's ex-director of comms, is joining the BBC Board. A critic of BBC bias. Will be their England representative.

He tells me: “The Corporation has a big job to reform and make sure it once again becomes the gold standard for broadcasting impartiality"

— Ben Riley-Smith (@benrileysmith) April 29, 2021

He seems nice

they’re not sending their best really are they

Before that he had a 25-year career with the Beeb, including as editor of Daily Politics and head of BBC Westminster.

It's been a privilege to work for the BBC. I will always be a supporter because of its values and commitment to impartiality.

— Robbie Gibb (@RobbieGibb) July 6, 2017

seems to suggest it all went to hell in the ~4 years he wasnt there.

The @BBCNews needs to make a statement was their building in Gaza housing Hamas militants firing rockets a simple yes they did or no the didn’t will suffice as that’s why it was targeted according to Israeli military.

— Ian Hodson (@IanBFAWU) May 15, 2021

My friend who is a reporter for Al Jazeera (and also ex-BBC) says that AJ’s Gaza bureau was also bombed to fuck.

They were in the same building.

Critical support for Bashir as a royal family wrecker

Haha.

as i've said elsewhere the bashir part of the story is the least interesting really. the diana connection is what makes the story front-page news but it's the sort of grimy bullshit that reporters have pulled forever and will keep pulling. the real story here - and actually kind of shocking to me, even though i should probably know better - is 1) the deliberate sabotaging of whistleblowers' careers and simultaneous protection of senior management and 2) the absolute shower of lies that tony hall poured into everyone's ears about this. tony was always the smiley guy who made inspiring speeches but behind the scenes it appears he was utterly corrupt!

"For the anonymous BBC leakers without whom we would never have known about Bashir's dishonesty there was only excoriation - briefed against by the BBC to the newspapers as "jealous colleagues" and referred to in an internal management document as "troublemakers." Because of "this sordid saga", says the document "we can either go the formal disciplinary route, which needs proof and may be messy or pick off the troublemakers one by one with a stiff warning and ensure they are found work elsewhere as speedily as is practicable".
The only named whistleblower Matt Wiessler would never again get any BBC work, Hall assured the governors. Wiessler paid a heavy price - his freelance graphics business eventually collapsed so he left London and in his own words became "a bit of a drifter… I tried lots of other things, but at heart I was always a television current affairs guy."

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-56680229

i mean this is real dark shit!

just passed a car with a bumper sticker that said ❤️ Honk if you miss Princess Diana :[ and jason very solemnly honked

— Patricia Lockwood (@TriciaLockwood) May 21, 2021

it's what she would've wanted

I heard she later became an advocate for distracted driving prevention ... ho ho ho!

Glad to see Hall has gone; there’s shit to answer for from 2016 let alone 1996

i always remember that she had been photographed a lot visiting minefield clearance sites just prior and when i heard she died i immediately assumed she had stepped on a landmine.

I can never get that Archbishop Of Canterbury cut-up on Blue Jam "Lord Of Landmines .. give them AIDS " out of my head!