A heavy snowfall of political opportunism - Hague

Just heard William Hague on Sky's Sunday Live programme describe Alan Johnson's criticism of the UK govenrment's response to the weather as "a heavy snowfall of political opportunism." I wonder if Hague's Conservative and Liberal Democrat colleagues in Scotland are listening?  I also wonder whether Johnson's attempt to politicise the weather will become a central editorial focus for the BBC? No sign of his comments leading their website. On the Andrew Marr show earlier, the tone was fluffy. Nobody called for for the UK transport minister Phil Hammond to resign. Blog reader Andrew Stuart has written an open letter to Conservative and Liberal Democrat MSPs saying:

"Doubtless you are now aware that hundreds of drivers were stranded overnight on the M6 motorway in Greater Manchester last night.Since this already happened in Scotland on the M8 and a Transport Minister resigned should Philip Hammond not do likewise? After all it would appear to be a shambles if he cannot avoid what has already happened and for which you wanted someone to resign for and even consider a vote of no confidence. I would hate to think that your previous reasons and rhetoric were purely political at a time when all politicians should have been focused on keeping the country moving rather than indulging in silly political posturing.I look forward to your answers to my question and a similar level of rhetoric and criticism on this shambles as you individually deployed last week.

Today the M25 is set to be "closed for some time." Where are the gloomy voice-overs about the world ending? It all vindicates my column last week claiming BBC Scotland's politicised snow coverage violated the Editorial Values enshrined in its charter. I also took the opportunity to question why so many BBC Scotland journalists and executives had close Labour Party ties. Atholl Duncan, head of News and Current Affairs at BBC Scotland wrote to The Scotsman to complain. But although he accuses me of being "inaccurate" he provides no facts to back up this assertion. He also points out that I am an SNP candidate - but that is clearly labelled on my columns, while the politcal leanings of BBC Scotland journalists and decision makers are not made public.

There is much more to be done on this subject, I have skirted the surface of the problem in the BBC and intend to continue to raise these concerns. The response to my column shows that many people share my views. Here is the column: 

"THE BBC's editorial values document is stirring stuff for journalists - I felt a renewed sense of virtue course through my veins with every paragraph. But though I read till the uplifting end, nowhere did I find the phrase "not for viewers in Scotland", meaning that the coverage last week of the snow chaos story did not meet the standards laid down in the BBC's charter.

Top of the list of values is Trust. Under this heading it says: "We are committed to achieving the highest standards of due accuracy and impartiality and strive to avoid knowingly and materially misleading our audiences." Then comes Truth: "Our output will be well sourced, based on sound evidence, thoroughly tested." After that, Impartiality, defined so "no significant strand of thought is knowingly unrepresented".

On Fairness: "Contributors and audiences will be treated with respect." On Public Interest: "We will be rigorous in establishing the truth of a story and well informed when explaining it. Our specialist expertise will bring authority and analysis to the complex world in which we live."

BBC Scotland failed to live up to these ideals the moment Raymond Buchanan demanded an apology five times from the former transport minister Stewart Stevenson on Newsnight Scotland last Monday. The chaos on the motorways emerged in late afternoon and nobody knew the cause other than snow. All except Mr Buchanan and his producers, who asked Stevenson to apologise before they asked for any update or explanation. 

There was no attempt to "establish the truth", nor of "treat audiences and contributors with respect". And "analysis of the complex world we live in" was missing too.

Stevenson performed badly by failing to empathise with stranded motorists and insisted the service was "first class", a clumsy attempt to acknowledge emergency workers. But many viewers also found Buchanan's approach insulting to their intelligence. For every person angry at the charmless politician, another thought it absurd to blame him for a blizzard. By the following morning the BBC was on a mission, not to explain, but to gain the upper hand. They had become part of the story and that was how they approached the matter for the rest of the week. It was personal. When Stevenson appeared on Tuesday's Good Morning Scotland he was ambushed by not one but two presenters who hit him with Monday weather reports. 

The unmedia-savvy minister seemed caught with his thermals down. In fact, no forecast predicted anything other than "more snow" of 2cm-5cm, not the heavy falls of up to 20cm which hit us.

Radio Scotland interview with a man from the Met Office at 7:15am on Monday was cheery, no hint of Armageddon. By Tuesday all that was forgotten in the race to nail Stevenson. This was not what the editorial values document calls "open, honest, straight dealing". 

Significantly, the BBC's rabid approach on Tuesday was not then reflected in the newspapers - but the corporation was determined to set the agenda, and it succeeded when the tabloids followed its lead and pilloried Stevenson. It is quite inconceivable that for example Radio 4's Today programme would have editorialised to this extent had a similar event happened in England (as indeed it had the previous week). Maybe London BBC staff are more aware of editorial values. Jeremy Hunt, the Westminster Culture Secretary, would have been on their case - and because he controls the licence fee, the BBC would be in big trouble. 

It is also inconceivable that the newsroom in England would be stacked with former Labour Party candidates, such as Catrina Renton, who used to present the mid-week politics programme, and former activists such as John Boothman, a senior executive controlling political coverage. Buchanan lacks that closeness of connection, though after leaving university he seriously considered a position in the office of George Robertson, the former Labour minister and one-time head of Nato. One of the lead reporters on last week's "Scotland at a standstill" story was Kirsten Campbell, wife of the Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Tavish Scott. The former Labour MSP Alastair Morrison is chairman of BBC Alba. 

I asked one respected and truly impartial journalist if the perception that BBC Scotland was anti-SNP was, in his view, justified. "Put it this way," he said. "It probably comes more naturally to them to attack the nationalists than to attack the union."

Compare BBC Scotland's passionate campaign to over-simplify the motorway blockade with its failure to engage in the row around Steven Purcell, the disgraced former Labour leader of Glasgow City Council. None of the many newspaper allegations about Labour donors gaining lucrative council contracts received serious scrutiny from BBC Scotland, which also paid scant attention to the eye-popping news that he had been spoken to by police for associating with criminals.

The contrast with Stevenson was remarkable. Here there was no exploration of the many different agencies involved in keeping Scotland running (or not), such as the quango Transport Scotland, councils, the police, and private road maintenance companies. The national broadcaster refused to engage with any arguments other than political cock-up. 

Quality newspapers printed pieces on the poor forecasts. Several respected commentators aired the view that there was little Stevenson could have done. Newspaper letter columns called for personal responsibility.

 

 

Comments

[Keith]

Another great piece Joan. I'd love to tefer to it on BWB but it is increasingly more apparent that any reference to Go Lassie Go and/or Joan McAlpine now goes the way of Newsnet Scotland so far as the BBC moderators are concerned. Next time I'll maybe just put in a couple of lines from a well known folk song and see what happens.

[Holyrood Horrors]

I'm all set, Joan. I've borrowed my neighbour's pitchfork and got petrol aplenty for my torch.

So who's all up for a protest outside Jackie SundayMail's Pacific Quay dressing room? We could have a synchronised ripping up of the Radio Times - Glenn Campbelly style.

[John RB]

Joan,
I think it would be really useful if you listed the "BBC Scotland journalists and executives with close Labour Party ties" It would seem to me that there are far more people linked to the SNP in that place. Remember George Foulkes and co making a big fuss about this at the last Scottish Election. The Editor of Reporting Scotland used to work with Salmond. One of the current political reporters, Sarah Paterson, is a former SNP press officer. Then you have one of the main reporters for years on telly was David Kerr, who has twice been an SNP candidate. The former Head of News Blair Jenkins left and took up a role with the First Minister on broadcasting and was nominated by the SNP for an MBE Two of Alex Salmond's main political advisors Alex Bell and Noel Dolan came straight from the BBC
Scotland newsroom to their current roles. The guy who used to edit Good Morning Scotland, Euan Crawford was Swinney's advisor till recently. So, I think that the facts don't necessarily back up your conspiracy theory.

[romeplebian]

given the biased coverage and ignorance of the charter we are given with enough co ordination to avoid paying their licence fee but it would need to be more than just a few thousand people doing it

[raisethegame]

Great article Joan. I have complained to the BBC on several occasions but it seems to make no difference. The appalling treatment of Nicola Sturgeon and indeed Scottish viewers on the last Question Time broadcast from Scotland means I no longer watch that programme. Raymond Buchanan on Newsnight (and his cohorts next morning on Radio Scotland) were really out of line. It is truly disgusting.

[ianbeag]

Now that the spotlight has been shone on the murky workings of the News and Current Affairs in both radio and TV departments of BBC Scotland maybe there could be a benefit to maintain a rolling record of the misdemeanours of individual presenters and others by creating a Scottish version of this website http://biased-bbc.blogspot.com/

[Uilleam MacDiarmid]

This is maybe a wee bit tongue in cheek, but isn't the BBC Trust supposed to monitor the BBC output, including journalistic integrity, against its stated values. I understand the Scottish representative is one Jeremy Peat, a more establishment figure it would be hard to contemplate.

[GrassyKnollington]

Joan I think people would be stunned if they discovered the true nature of the many interconnections between the unionist establishment and it's journalists.

The salient point is that despite being in Government the SNP are not part of that establishment.

The connections between the BBC and Labour are well known amongst political anoraks but I doubt if the Scottish public at large have much of a clue. Atholl Duncan's touchiness when the facts are exposed by a mainstream journalist hints at their reluctance for the cosy relationship to be put under a spotlight.

The most brilliant and predictable thing of all was that rather than address your concerns he chose the default unionist response of dismissing you as a Nat.

There was an article a good few years ago ( I think in Scotland on Sunday?) which made an attempt at exposing all the connections but I imagine things have changed a lot now and that new connections have appeared.

You hint that you've only skimmed the surface of exposing these connections and I do hope there's more to come.

It's vital for them to be able to dismiss any criticism as cybernat paranoia but a thorough examination of who's who in our media especially BBC Scotland would perhaps reveal a different story

A supposedly impartial BBC found to be stuffed full of Labour Party sympathisers would hardly be a shock to most intelligent Scots but lets have it all out in the open anyway, if only to get them rattled out of their complacency.

[Colin MacLeod]

I sent the following to the Scotsman letters' page last Wednesday. Needless to say, it wasn't published:
Joan McAlpine’s piece today, “BBC Scotland must do its homework”, echoes to a considerable extent my own long-standing frustration with BBC Scotland. I have complained on several occasions, without success, about the paucity and obvious lack of talent in the BBC Scotland’s output on Current Affairs and Politics. For me, the fact that I have paid for more years than I care to remember for a second-rate service from BBC Scotland is galling and it is not just in the poor quality of its presenters and analysts but also its second-rate production standards. This criticism also applies to most, but not all, of its other TV output. It is especially apposite for many of its drama productions.

An objective look at its so-called flagship programme, Reporting Scotland, shows an obsession with crime, drugs and football. Apart from Sally Magnusson, the presenters on the programme are poor with, one frequently used stand-in female presenter (who also doubles on Breakfast), needing elocution lessons for my untuned ear. The stories are generally tabloid in nature and its political analysis superficial and trite. It frequently come across as being afraid to ruffle Labour feathers and too ready to stick it to the SNP. Given its propensity to hire ex-Labour fellow travellers, as reported by Joan, such a lack of balance comes as no surprise to those, like me, who have been observing its output for some time. Too much time is given to football and not enough time given to objective analysis of serious material really relevant to modern-day Scotland. It is advertised to finish at 7 pm but invariably finishes 5 minutes early.

I had great hopes for Newsnight Scotland when it first started but it has now also descended into the miasma of BBC Scotland mediocrity. Its regular presenter, Gordon Brewer frequently gives the impression of being totally bored with his task and has an annoying tendency of interrupting and talking over his interviewees’ contribution. Newsnight also suffers from the anti-SNP bias I mentioned previously, as amply illustrated by the execrable Raymond Buchanan interview. It also seems to favour commentators and contributors who have earned their living working for Labour party politicians. For example, Lorraine Davidson, who worked for a Labour politician and is now married to one, appears frequently on the programme to assess political situations.

In order to remedy the malaise at the heart of BBC Scotland, there should be a root and branch evaluation of personnel; starting at the top with Ken McQuarrie whose obsequious acceptance and connivance with London over the Leader’s Debates issue at the last General Election marks him out as London’s man in Scotland. The News and Current Affairs editorial and reporting staff needs new blood and there should be a careful assessment of their likely political impartiality. Such an appraisal is timely and particularly important because of the impending election next May.

[Anon]

When Elizabeth Quigley married John Swinney she was taken off reporting anything vaguely important. BBC Scotland should apply the same standards across the board.

[iain maclachlan]

Joan

You hint at the way forward and answer to this problem with the quote "Jeremy Hunt, the Westminster Culture Secretary, would have been on their case - and because he controls the licence fee, the BBC would be in big trouble. "

Our licence fees should be given to the Scottish Government (what ever party that might be) to control. The sooner we can have control of our own media the better for all concerned.

[ianbeag]

Well said Joan. It is time to remove the kid gloves, delve deeper into the dark recesses of internal BBC workings and the political loyalties of presenters and editors. Your two articles have provided useful pointers to the degree of political bias which was amply demonstrated last week and which, clearly is the tip of the iceberg. The handling of the almost identical weather situation in S.E. England yesterday by the BBC and their failure to persecute or harass the responsible minister focuses precisely on the extent of the political bias in Pacific Quay and on the lack of professionalism of the presenters and acquiescence on the part of their managers. It would be useful to know how many of the senior staff in BBC Scotland, charged with delivering "the highest standards of due accuracy and impartiality" by their charter receive taxpayer funded salaries greater than Scotland's First Minister or the Prime Minister. I think we should be told.

[Nconway]

But what can we the public do to bring BBC Scotland to heal ...nothing and how frustrating is that.

[Dubbieside]

Joan

It was also rather nice of the BBC to give such a long advert for a program on Sky TV. The Christmas day 3D program was covered in great detail.

Is it part of the BBC charter to advertise their rivals programs?

[J Barclay]

Well written Joan you have captured the sentiments and views of a lot of people I know. The people of Scotlnd should never forget the sad expediant politics of this witch hunt.

[Ron]

Couldn't agree with you more!