Why is the Sun so lame these days? Here’s a case study. Overnight everyone was expecting a deluge of incitement to pour forth on the Supreme Court, but when the mountains had finished travailing we got this: This is a mad choice of lead, and a reference to the catchphrase of a TV comedian who…
Read More How did the Sun get so weak?People are asking about this. Did anyone ever get to the bottom of Andy Coulson’s security clearance? Or the vetting process to hire him? Messy stuff coming… — Mark Ferguson (@Markfergusonuk) June 24, 2014 Coulon was originally subject to a “security check” level of vetting, which wouldn’t have permitted him to see documents above SECRET…
Read More Recap: Andy Coulson, strap oneSo Andy Coulson, famously, was subject to a background check by Control Risks before joining Downing St. There was some doubt as to whether he had actually gone through the positive vetting process. Supposedly he had, and he was cleared to see “Strap 1” material. But then it turned out in fact the DVA hadn’t…
Read More We didn’t let Coulson see anything sensitive except for the SIGINThttp://t.co/WhC091O2ie > The Sun will soon know where you buy your cans of lager. probably also a guess at your local #creepy #bigdata — Alex Harrowell (@yorksranter) July 31, 2013 So, the Sun is on the move. This was a bit of a surprise to me, what with News reorganising to separate the UK papers…
Read More Get involved.So what’s up with this? Tuesday’s Sun front page – “Maggie dead in bed at Ritz” #tomorrowspaperstoday #bbcpapers #Thatcher twitter.com/suttonnick/sta… — Nick Sutton (@suttonnick) April 8, 2013 The Sun was always her biggest media pal. This is presumably a broadcast from Murdoch Central – the supposedly retired elder-statesman Trevor “I thought I scooped Hutton fair…
Read More Tab noteHere’s the funny bit in this post: Charming. @metpoliceuk go on record to admit they are actually as suspected, a gang. Be afraid kids. #acab pic.twitter.com/HzfHmC1Q — Vicki (@Iamverysmart) January 12, 2013 OK, that done, a senior detective has been found guilty of leaking the phone-hacking investigation to the NoTW. This is the nut of…
Read More Public Affairs, the movie: three gang theory in actionSo, the Southern Investigations wing of the Murdoch scandal just woke up again. It seems that Jonathan Rees, the guy whose business partner in the dodgy detective agency run by moonlighting cops got axed to death and the cop investigating the case took his place before he went to jail as a kiddy fiddler –…
Read More the intersection of Leveson and political plane-spottingWhy hasn’t Marunchak been arrested?
Read More Short LevesonHere’s a post, first of a three-part series, from The Monkey Cage about inequality and power. The point Martin Gilens makes is that where a policy has broadly similar support across US income groups, its chance of being put into effect follows a well-behaved response curve with its approval rating. But a policy on which…
Read More The reactionary Internet predates ‘t other unI am not sure Nick Cohen, or indeed anyone else, should be taking News International statements as to how one of their journalists got arrested at face value. It wasn’t that long ago when they were briefing the wider media that the G-men were arresting people for “buying their sources lunch” or “fiddling their expenses”,…
Read More A message from short-term memory