YET ANOTHER WARK ON THE BIASED SIDE

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That "Cadbury's Law" which sounds so tasty to that BBC reporter was the main subject on last night's Newsnight, the basic gist of which can be copied and pasted from the live blog itself:

2248: Newsnight's political editor Michael Crick says Cadbury's Law will be a hard policy for the Conservatives to criticise. It's a patriotic issue - protecting UK firms from predatory foreign companies - and is likely to appeal to many traditional Tory voters, he says.
2242: "Cadbury's Law" is set to be a feature of the Labour manifesto, BBC Newsnight has learned. The policy has been prompted by the Kraft takeover of British chocolate giant Cadbury - American firm Kraft promised to keep the main factory open before the deal was agreed, but then changed its mind afterwards. Under Cadbury's Law, it would be harder for overseas takeovers of UK companies to happen - requiring two thirds of shareholders to agree, not 50% as it is now. Newsnight's economic editor Paul Mason says it's the main concession to the Unite union in the Labour manifesto.

Ah, a little Old Labour protectionism to warm the cockles of a Beeboid's heart, fire-proofed against Tory attack - according to Michael Crick! On the programme itself he called it "a very tricky issue for the Conservatives". (Guess what though? The Lib Dems support Labour on this!)
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What though of the other measure discussed in the programme - "Tory marriage plans"? Kirsty Wark turned to Crick and asked "More ideology that actual effect, or what?" In response, Crick emphasized the "symbolism" of the move, especially in trying to show "the Conservative commitment under David Cameron to civil partnerships, to gay marriage - and that's particularly important after the trouble they had only a few days ago, after Chris Graying's comments about bed and breakfasts being allowed to refuse gay couples staying." Ah, back to that again! What a surprise!
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Kirsty then turned to Paul Mason (who had earlier downplayed the importance of Unite to Labour's anti-Kraftwerk wheeze), and again asked a question from a stance hostile to the Tories' plans (this time from a feminist angle): "Is this an encouragement for one of the marriage (sic), probably the woman, to stay at home?"
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Interviewing Ed Davey of the Lib Dems, Kirsty, Newsnight's most biased interviewer, turned to the subject of the Tory marriage proposals and asked Mr Davey this testing question: "And how are we on the tax break in the Liberal Democrats then?" Mr Davey, being a Lib Dem, laid into the Tory plan with a vengeance. "Let's see how ludicrous this proposal is," he ended. "If you've been widowed, you're there in bereavement, you're going to have this take break taken away from you at that point? That surely can't be right." Any half-decent interviewer, acting at all times as devil's advocate, would then surely have felt it their obvious duty to ask the next question from a stance supportive of the Conservative position. This is Kirsty Wark though, so instead she merely echoed Ed Davey's point, and asked "And presumably the same will happen if couples split up and the the woman is left behind, she loses out as well." Well might Mr Davey have begun his reply "Absolutely!"
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Kirsty is both incompetent and deeply biased. Mere guidelines on impartiality during a general election mean nothing to her.

THERE'LL BE NO WELCOME IN THE STUDIOS

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It was 'haves' and 'have-nots' on last night's Newsnight, which can only mean one thing - a report from old commie Paul Mason. The 'haves' were the wicked bankers making their evil profits, the 'have nots' were the public sector workers, ground beneath the heel of top-hatted capitalism and its running dogs.
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As with yesterday's Greek report, Paul began at a protest with striking workers. We heard from two union members and their far-far-left leader Mark Serwotka (PCS union). For a change of perspective Mason then turned to...the TUC! We heard from Ken Mulkearn , editor of their IDS Pay Review, saying all going's to be well for the private sector but not for the public sector (well, he would say that, wouldn't he!) Marc Ostwald, strategist at Monument Securities, came next. Quite what his politics are I can't say! He was on to support Paul's contention that 'output theory' is 'wearing thin'. Then, with all the inevitability of a Bruce Forsyth catchphrase, on came Vince Cable to provide his 'expert' view.
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At least Vince wasn't one of the guests in the following discussion with Kirsty Wark. Surprisingly that was John Redwood. Mr Redwood may not know the words of the Welsh national anthem (as the BBC still likes to remind us from time to time) but he is a wise voice, worthy of as many invites to the studios of the BBC as Vince himself (but getting VASTLY fewer such invites). He put up a characteristically strong performance. He was up against the aforementioned Mark Serwotka. John Redwood was interrupted three times (I.C. of 0.7). Kirsty's characteristically dumb questions to him went on about 'injustice'. Her first question to Mr Serwotka tempted him to attack the Tories (why not bite the Labour bullet Mark or face a pay freeze under the Tories?) and a later question showed yet again her sheer ineptness as an interviewer. I'm no expert on trade unions but even I already knew that the PCS union is not affiliated to the Labour Party (Labour's far too right-wing for Mr Serwotka and friends). Slursty didn't: "What do you think of the position of your union, for example? Do you think you should just set aside your relations with Labour in the hope than an incoming Conservative government's going to treat you better?"
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MASONS OF THE WORLD UNITE!

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'Former' Trot Paul Mason was back in Greece for last night's Newsnight, talking again to the Greek Far Left.
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We heard from all manner of leftist strikers, agitators and students, and Paul talked up the risk of severe unrest, even revolution. He was clearly in his element.
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He then went on to very briefly interview George Alogoskoufis, finance minister of the previous conservative New Democracy government, adopting an accusatory tone and blaming his party alone for the crisis. (He'd absolved the 'social democrat' PASOK from blame earlier in the report, despite their long periods in office throughout the last thirty years.)
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This was extraordinary stuff, complete with its incidental talk of 'posh people' and their 'Gucci' culture. Citizen Smith ('Power to the people!') would surely have compiled a report just like this one!
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I was surprised to hear someone on PM last week (I can't remember who) stating that, contrary to the impresson Mason has been giving during the last couple of weeks, the Greek public is broadly understanding and largely supportive of strong austerity measures. A little research shows this to be true:

Greek Polls Register Public Support For Austerity Measures

A number of public opinion polls released over the weekend showed increased public support for the Greek government’s reform measures as it tries to shape the country’s struggling public finances.

As Dow Jones Newswires reports, four separate polls show public approval for tough measures at a rate that exceeds 60%, and in some cases, they even register support for harsher reforms, while also showing relatively little support for recent farmer protests or upcoming strikes by civil servants.

In a poll in Sunday’s To Vima newspaper, 64.1% of participants say the reforms are in the "right direction" while 64.3% note that the measures were necessary.

In a separate poll for Sunday newspaper Proto Thema, between 54.6% and 71.4% of respondants supported for different specific measures ranging from a freeze on public sector wages, to an increase in the retirement age and an increase in the fuel tax.

A poll conducted for the Saturday edition of financial daily Imerisia shows that 68.9% of the public think the measures are necessary for the country to emerge from the crisis.

A poll for Skai radio and television shows that 62% of the public opinion believes the government is capable of dealing with the crisis and 60% say that the three-year austerity plan will deliver.

http://english.capital.gr/news.asp?id=903774
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You would have thought that Paul Mason might have mentioned this, if only in passing. I've been listening to him on this subject very carefully, and I can't recall him ever mentioning this. His far-Left 'past' probably makes him deaf to this sort of (for him) unwelcome news.
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Postscript:
In fairness to Mr Mason, his blog covers the same story in much greater detail and does (briefly) mention those opinion polls that show support for austerity measures.

POLICY OR COMPETITIVENESS?

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The left-wing business correspondent of The World Tonight Jonty Bloom has his counterpart, of course, on Newsnight - 'former' Trotskyite Paul Mason. Mason, like Bloom, approves of government action. On last night's programme, when discussing the serious difficulties facing the economies of the Eurozone (which the BBC used to assure us wouldn't happen thanks to the miracle of the Euro), Paul (dressed down for Friday) made this point about why some countries are recovering more slowly than others, very emphatically: "Where there is growth at all it is mainly down to policy." Amusingly, his supportive 'talking head', banker babe Janet Henry (pictured left), Chief European Economist at HSBC, wasn't as supportive as he thought: "The main differences are policy and competitiveness", she said. Note that this adds something Paul Mason didn't mention, competitiveness. She went on "But the main difference... (is) very much to do with competitiveness." So, whereas he says its mainly policy, she says it's mainly competitiveness. He's a Leftie, she's not.

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Mason went on to plug the government line, also very emphatically: "This slow-down will make it harder for countries to do austerity, because it's a fragile recovery and early withdrawal of stimulus could kill it off."

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PAXO HAMMERS HAMMOND AGAIN

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Unlike Radio 4's The World Tonight, which characteristically discussed the economy with Vince Cable only, Newsnight gathered Lord Myners, Philip Hammond and, yes, Vince Cable to chew over banking reform. Jeremy Paxman's interruptions (as ever on such occasions) were not fairly distributed, as the interruption coefficients show very clearly:
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Philip Hammond - 10 interruptions, I.C of 3.2
Vince Cable - 3 interruptions, I.C. of 1.3
Lord Myners - 4 interruptions, I.C. of 1.2
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This had followed a bank-bashing report by Paul Mason, featuring a new BBC favourite, former high-flying banker and 'City Boy' author Geraint Anderson (son of Labour MP Donald Anderson), now a sharp critic of the bankers.
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WISE VOICES ON NEWSNIGHT

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Last night's Newsnight contained a scorching interview of Labour's Mike O'Brien by Jeremy Paxman on the NHS Out Of Hours service (I.C. of 3.2, the highest so far this month - one ahead of Philip Hammond on 3.1). This shows again that Paxo lands punches across the political spectrum - except on 'wise' Dr Vince Cable of course. Vince was on the programme discussing bank bonuses, and was (as so often) treated as an independent economist rather than as a Liberal Democrat politician. He was in discussion with the American author Janet Tavakoki. This followed a report on America and the bankers by 'former' Trot Paul Mason ("While Wall Street wallows in bonus billions here in the job centres there is real economic pain") and featured as his star witness Robert Kuttner, co-editor of the liberal American Prospect magazine. Later still Peter Taylor's report about Alki Ada in Yemen featured the ubiquitous (on the BBC) Michael Scheuer - the former CIA agent who wants the West to repudiate the Bush Administration's war on terror and adopt an approach centred on removing Moslem grievances, especially by getting very tough on Israel.

BUDDY, CAN YOU SPARE SOME BIAS?

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Last night's Newsnight was a special from New York on the Great Depression and its lessons for today. If ever a programme demonstrated the BBC's left-wing cultural and political bias this was it.
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The opening report from Paul Mason on the economic lessons of the Great Depression featured as its main expert Max Fraad-Wolff, a left-liberal economist from the 'progressive university' The New School and a regular blogger on the ultra-liberal Huffington Post website. The other two 'talking heads' were Professor Mark Gertler of New York University, a 'New Keynesian' economist, and Professor Alan Brinkley, 'progressive historian' of the New Deal at Columbia University.
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The following roundtable discussion, hosted by Kirsty Wark, featured one of America's leading left-liberal voices, Arianna Huffington herself (of Huffington Post fame). Alongside her was our own Simon Schama, who left-wing views are well known. With these voices of the Left were Liaquat Ahamed, author of 'Lords of Finance', and Andrew Ross Sirkin, author of 'Too Big to Fail'. Mr Ahamed made plenty of left-wing noises, but the oft-interrupted Mr Sirkin sounded less shrill.
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Next came another report from Paul Mason, this time looking at the cultural lessons of the Great Depression. Its main talking heads were cultural historian Morris Dickstein, author of 'Dancing in the Dark' and a proud, self-professed liberal, and one of Newsnight Review's regular gaggle of yakking lefties, the literature lecturer and frequent contributor to The Guardian and The Independent Sarah Churchwell. The third voice was the Obama-supporting head of the America's National Endowment for the Arts, Rocco Landesman.
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For Kirsty's other roundtable discussion, guess who remained? Arianna Huffington and Simon Schama, of course. They were joined by another occasional Guardianista and Newsnight Review leftie, Hari Hunzru.and a cultural critic called David D'Arcy. What a left-wing love-in followed!
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Even by the standards of Newsnight, this was a tour-de-force of bias.
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CUTTING THE CONSERVATIVES

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Not a particularly balanced edition of Newsnight last night, though it opened promisingly. Peter Mandelson was heard slamming the Tories over spending cuts. Cue the snearing voice of Jeremy Paxman, saying "And there'd be no cuts under Labour? Come off it!", followed by the programme's opening credits.
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This promise of a fair look at both Conservative and Labour was partly delivered in the opening report by David Grossman.
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The promise was completely betrayed, however, by the studio discussion that followed between Jeremy and Newsnight's business editor Paul Mason, which concentrated almost exclusively on Tory spending/cutting plans - complete with graphs and all. Why?
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What followed was even worse. An interview with ex-BBC Labour minister Ben Bradshaw, lasting 4 minutes 23 seconds, was quite soft - especially as it went on - for Jeremy Paxman (I.C. of 1.2). Bradshaw repeatedly attacked the Tories throughout.
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To balance that a Conservative was needed, and provided in the shape of Norman Lamont. But, oddly, this sop to fairness was cancelled out by having Labour's Frank Dobson join him in the discussion. Dobson dominated proceedings (being a bit of a bully) - though Lord Lamont got the last laugh! (Watch and see!). The extent of that domination can be seen if we compare the timings for the double-interview:
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Lamont - 1 minute 42 seconds
Dobson - 3 minutes 11 seconds
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If we tot these figures up, that (obviously) means that Labour got 7 minutes 34 seconds of interview time to make its case, whereas the Conservatives only got 1 minute 42 seconds. Hardly fair, is it?

The Interruption Coefficients add insults to injury, as not only did Lamont get least time he was also interrupted most often:
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Lamont - 1.4
Bradshaw - 1.2
Dobson - 1
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