Has Bright Joined the Dark Side?
Guido has long respected the New Statesman's Martin Bright as an investigative journalist, but his extended and continuing proximity to the Smith Institute seems to be compromising his objectivity. He wrote a very prissy and disingenuous defence of his employer, the New Statesman, when Guido pointed out that it is a Brownite fanzine which both cross-subsidises and houses the Sith HQ.
Now he is quoting discredited Sith propaganda in his article this week, claiming that Gordon Brown
is bolstered by a poll of 100 leading figures from the City, industry, media and politics carried out by Opinion Leader Research, which showed that 87 per cent believed what the Chancellor said, compared to 58 per cent for Cameron
That "poll of 100 leading figures from the City, industry, media and politics carried out by Opinion Leader Research" has zero credibility. The methodology is not one recognised by the rest of the polling industry. OLR is run by Brown's personal pollster, Deborah Mattinson, she is always wheeled out with contrary "research" when Brown gets a bad press from negative polls from more objective organisations.
OLR also has a six-figure contract with HM Treasury. Martin Bright had the cheek to question Guido's independence last month, how independent do you think that OLR poll might be?Deborah Mattison also sits on the board of the Smith Institute and OLR does polling for them as well. The Sith's office is all of six yards away from Martin Bright's desk at the New Statesman. How independent is he?
The New Statesman publishes glossy corporate "sponsored supplements" for the Smith Institute, but not one single mention of the Smith Institute's troubles has appeared on it's pages...
32 comments:
If what you say is right, he is not that Bright.
Martin is a journalist of integrity Guido and you know it.
But not everyone has private wealth, some of us hacks have to pay the mortgage every month.
Well it might be incestuous, but that's perfectly alright for NuLab standards.
Tut tut Guido, questioning the ethics and moral standards of people directly behind the anointed one....that's almost sacriligious.
That's half doz hail Mary's and £20-00 in the offerty box and keep digging.
Martin Bright is a really fantastic journalist, his work on extremism in British mosques has been really illuminating. Can't bring myself to care a great deal about this to be honest.
He has succumbed to evil Sith mind tricks.
Be fair to Bright. He IS a good political journalist but his mortgage depends on the New Statesman. If he fucks off Brown, he'll be sacked by Robinson. Simple as.
Well the Policy Exchange share offices with Conservatives for Change.
I guess that they are not "independent" either then, by your analysis?
Obviously he's able to dish it out but not take it back , Guido.
Guido - did you get your ticket to that Sith lecture next week??
Anon said... "Be fair to Bright. He IS a good political journalist but his mortgage depends on the New Statesman. If he fucks off Brown, he'll be sacked by Robinson. Simple as."
He cannot be a good political journalist if he is beholden to politicians and/or their paymasters. He may write some good stuff - I think he does - but if you have to weigh his self-interest when he writes about an important piece of the political jigsaw then he is a paid propagandist not an independent journalist. There's nothing wrong with that necessarily as long as he doesn't use his other journalism to cloak his propaganda and present it, or allow it to be perceived, as something else.
Guido, whilst chasing around these pond-life delinquent SpaDs in their cesspool of minor political importance, surely you must have noticed that the true stink is emanting from La Hewitt's odious fiefdom. The latest Nulabour wheeze which is culling doctors is a stain on our society. Can you please start to hound this dreadful moron out of office. She's a disgrace. She is an amoeba at the white tip of a pimple on Blair's arse. Frankly..what a cnut!
his mortgage depends on the New Statesman.
"I was only acting under orders"
Ed it's " i was only obeying orders".
As for La Hewitt, can we not deport her from whence she came and her wretched hubbie. A shrill harpy.
Sleazy, isn't it.
I managed to get "Don't get me started on Gordon Brown" in the NS Diary last week, so all is not lost. I was hoping they would cut it so I could wack this info straight over to Guido. But, alas, no.
the shroud of the dark side has fallen...
Corruption will only stop when exposed, so allegations of impartiality are absurd. If Guido exposes the Sith for what it is then its good for everyone. If the Sith are forced to come clean its unlikely a Tory equiv would go undetected isnt it?
If you follow guido's quest in exposing these odious cnuts it makes it impossible for the next government to do the same. That is good for democracy and equality.
I am still shocked by the number of NuLab apologists who are happy to see their own reputations trashed by the disgraceful behaviour of the elite in their party.
I remain of the opinion that ANYONE would get elected PM if he promised an inquiry into the sleaze of this government and that ALL recommendations would be implemented. Any public figure with unquestioned integrity would win by a landslide. It will never happen but I cannot believe that if Cameron appointed Harold 'Dickie' Bird to opine on matters of truth an honesty it would have them out in their 10,000 voting?
Any journo that lets Justin "FaceYoghurt" McKeating guest his column is a cunt. Bright is a cunt.
Are OLR members of the Market Research Society? If so, they must respond to the following -
'When opinion research results are put in the public domain MRS Members must supply data to support the results if it is requested.' (ref Code of Conduct - www.mrs.org.uk/standards/opinion.htm)
If not MRS members, then on what basis were they given all of those government contracts? Surely MRS companies would have been better qualified.
Addendum to earlier comment -
If this research is invalidated by the MRS, OLR may be obliged to withdraw it and the Sun to retract/apologise.
He's 'a journalist of integrity'. What exactly is that, then?
As to the '100'. Why don't these 'leading figures' just come out publicly and identify themselves? They're big boys and girls now, aren't they? Between them they can probably afford to take out a full page ad in 'The Big Issue', or the 'Caithness Courier'.
Let's get a bit of evidence on the table, eh? After all, that ginger bint has had enough time now to ring round and get some genuine names on paper. Maybe they don't have 100 friends, though.
Or maybe it was a 'secret' survey.
Bright as a TOC H lamp
What exactly are you donng reading the New Statesman any way Guidot .....shocking bad taste old boy
Sir,
Addendum to addendum -
DM is member of the MRS (see - www.poolonline.com/bios/biodmatt.html), so is bound by the code of conduct
OLR would seem to have played extremely fast'n'loose with the methodology for this research. It clearly discredits the opinion polling trade. They must know this and be worried that they are seriously in breach of the MRS code of conduct.
I think they have to be made to withdraw it, don't you? It was obviously intended to damage Mr Cameron's reputation and, as such, is a wholly inappropriate way for market research to be used.
If it is left unchallenged, it further discredits the market research profession and, indeed, the MRS itself (implying that it is ineffectual and its code of conduct irrelevant, which I am sure it isn't).
Have a jolly weekend.
Genius.
I am suprised this whole thing has not been taken up elsewhere with greater enthusiasm. the whole story is superb and patently true.I wonder if it would be possible to find a picture of her palatial residence by the same legitimate means lately used by Peter Hitchens.
I would guess that it is probably a quite nice one .....
Yes the "leading the interviewer" report is complete bollox.
That said why worry if they help ease Brown in and the truth is that most leaders cannot stand him?
Just sit back and watch it all unravel.
Its all about an old man in a hurry. Brown looks 10 yrs older than his real age. Worry more about who his deputy is.
Indeed, but one should not underestimate the power incumbent in the position of 'Prime Minister' and what can be done to manipulate the public sector vote. We might end up with a PM who appeases (buys off) a sufficiently large part of the populace in the right parts of the country to ensure an election win. One thing is for sure, life will not be easy for Signor Guido if Gordo gets his way.
87 per cent believed what the Chancellor said, compared to 58 per cent for Cameron??????
I suppose the real figures her entirely random "opinion former" sample gave her, i.e. 100% and 0%, would have made things just a tad too obvious, even for the Murdoch target audience
Any journalist who writes a puff piece, even to pay his mortgage, can not be considered credible.
Maybe there is an opening for him at the BBC? Maybe this was his BBC applications form. Crick can't have much longer to go on current form.
I wish someone would pay me to write stuff.
"Martin is a journalist of integrity Guido and you know it.
But not everyone has private wealth, some of us hacks have to pay the mortgage every month. "
Then it is hypocritical to question Guido's independence.
100% of those polled would rather see Martin Bright impaled on a black spike than read his guff.
Martin Bright is a prat.
Post a Comment