14 June 2013 - US Arms that will 'Fix' Problems in Syria
6 May 2013 - Language Creep as BBC Discuss Chemical Weapons in Syria
6 May 2013 - Language Creep as BBC Discuss Chemical Weapons in Syria
5 March 2013 - BBC Misinforms about Venezuela's 2002 Opposition Coup
14 January 2013 - BBC Removes Gung-Ho Headline on French Military Action

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Syrian Conflict: Biases on International Involvement in the UK Media
The Editors, 17 June 2013

Barack Obama's decision to further arm the Syrian rebels, which has prompted Iran to respond by sending 4,000 troops to support Bashar Al-Assad, has been met by the BBC's Mark Mardell, currently travelling with Obama, not by high-level alarm at the potential repercussions of the internationalisation of the Syrian conflict, but...

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UK Media Helps Pave Road to War on Syria
The Editors, 8 May 2013

The Syrian conflict has been accompanied by a distinct media narrative. Within this narrative - which poses a binary division between the forces engaged in the conflict, identifying the players as good (the rebels, who must receive 'our' support) and bad (the government) - the role the West must play is...

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'Could Prove Useful to Israel': Media Support for Western Arms Deals
The Editors, 23 April 2013

An important job for the representatives of any world power is to fly around the world selling arms to client states. Despite David Cameron's constant rhetoric that countries to have a right to defend themselves (preferably using British-made hardware), it is certainly undeniable that continuous arms sales in no way make...

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Reporting on Syria: How the Media Designates a Role for the UK
The Editors, 20 March 2013

'We believe that a people is in danger today [...] we have to give the Syrian opposition the means finally to gain the upper hand, that is the departure of Bashar al-Assad', announced French president Francois Hollande recently, while David Cameron explained that 'what we want to do is work with...

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The BBC's 'Bogeyman' Narrative on Hugo Chavez
The Editors, 7 March 2013

The BBC maintained a strong a record of misleading reporting throughout the presidency of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, who died on Tuesday, following a two year battle with cancer. Yet today's article by Jon Kelly, 'Hugo Chavez and the era of anti-American bogeymen', takes a particularly spiteful slant on the issue...

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Acquiescence and Sycophancy as David Cameron Tours North Africa
The Editors, 4 February 2013

Many of the major UK news reports are routinely shaped by Prime Ministerial speeches and press releases, often including a sense of balance in presenting oppositional views emerging from parliamentary debate and opposition. However on issues such as foreign policy, upon which the main political parties are more or less in...

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Legitimising Violence in Reporting on International Conflict
The Editors, 4 February 2013

The media's portrayal of international conflict often implicitly expresses judgement on the justness or otherwise of the use of force. This is evident in the differing approaches taken towards the reporting of acts of war, in which the issue of violence is portrayed by turn as legitimate or criminal, depending on...

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UK Reporting on Venezuela Continues to be Clouded by Partiality
The Editors, 17 December 2012

As Hugo Chavez receives further cancer treatment in Cuba, this time seemingly with much higher stakes than before, the UK media has again shown where its interests lie when it comes to reporting on left-wing Latin American governments. The attack has come in many forms, from portraying once again the country...

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Whitewashing an Assault: BBC Coverage of the Israel-Gaza Ceasefire
The Editors, 22 November 2012

Last night a ceasefire came into effect after a week of attacks on Gaza which left over 150 Palestinians dead (at least 40 of them children) and rocket fire into Israel which left 5 Israelis dead. Before the news of the ceasefire became the front-page headline on the BBC News website,...

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Siding with the Powerful: UK Media Coverage of the Assault on Gaza
The Editors, 16 November 2012

The BBC News, and particularly the reports from Diplomatic Correspondent Jonathan Marcus, on the ongoing Israeli military attacks on the Gaza Strip has presented the violence as little more than a defensive policy manoeuvre by Israel, whose government, in Marcus's view, 'clearly wants' another ceasefire. On Wednesday Marcus wrote that the Israeli...

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The Treasures of War: The Today Programme on 'Britain's Great Adventure in Basra'
The Editors, 26 October 2012

Radio 4's Today programme of 16 October provided rare, frank insight into the priorities behind the British occupation of Iraq, and the inherent entanglement between the military effort and 'British business'. Presenter John Humphrys discussed the closure of the British consulate in Basra with financier Andrew Alderson and executive chairman of...

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Venezuelan Election Day: Channel 4 Selects Pro-Opposition Viewpoints
The Editors, 7 October 2012

British news is today (07/10/2012) much concerned with the elections underway in Venezuela. The election will be the 'closest since Hugo Chavez took power' (The Guardian), or the 'the country's most tightly contested presidential election in a decade' (BBC). To begin with, it should be noted that the above assertions are themselves...

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Alarm and Hypocrisy: When Retaliation is Unacceptable to the Media
The Editors, 3 October 2012

The Independent's 'legendary pedant', Guy Keleny, recently highlighted the hypocrisy of press reporting on nuclear weapons: 'It is an iron law of journalese usage that every nuclear power in the world has a nuclear weapon - except one. Britain alone occupies a higher moral plane, and deploys not a weapon but...

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The BBC, East Timor and the Revision of History
Josh Watts, 13 September 2012

On Thursday, 6 September 2012, the BBC reported US Secretary of State Hilary Clinton's 'landmark trip to East Timor', making her 'the first US secretary of state to do so since the country's independence in 2002'. 'Mrs Clinton', explained the BBC, 'said her visit was a sign of America's support for...

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All the Facts on Agent Orange?
Josh Watts, 24 August 2012

On the back page of its World news section, The Independent relayed a tiny 106 word Associated Press report, that the United States is 'beg[inning] a landmark project to clean up a dangerous chemical [dioxin] left from the defoliant Agent Orange, 50 years after American planes first sprayed it on Vietnam's...

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Simplifying History: the BBC's Coverage of US and Cuba Relations
Josh Watts, 3 August 2012

Cuban President Raul Castro 'grabbed the microphone' at a Revolution Day ceremony in eastern Guantánamo, reported the BBC, and 'made a seemingly impromptu address' in which he 'said he is willing to hold talks with the US'. So explained an article which left much unsaid with regards to US-Cuba relations. In his...

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Olympic Security and the Limits of Debate
The Editors, 27 July 2012

'Our instructions from government are absolutely clear', explained Home Office security and counter-terrorism head Charles Farr to the BBC's Gordon Corera. '[O]f course the priority must be to save and protect life, but our priority should also be to keep the Games running. The Games go on'. The need to secure the...

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Choosing Sides: The BBC's Coverage of the Venezuelan Election Race
The Editors, 19 July 2012

In the upcoming Venezuelan presidential elections, to be held in October of this year, the electorate will choose between current President Hugo Chavez and opposition candidate Henrique Capriles Radonski, former governor of Miranda state. BBC coverage of the run-up to the presidential elections to date has depicted a situation in which one...

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Nuclear State: Media not Concerned about UK Weapons Development
The Editors, 18 June 2012

Over the last 7 months, UK journalists have consistently voiced their objection to nuclear weapons proliferation. This opposition appears as the western media holds a magnifying glass to Iran and speculation abounds over Iran's nuclear capabilities; speculation that appears to be more in line with western governments' policy rather than with...

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Justifying Targeted Assassinations: the BBC on the Effectiveness of Drone Strikes
The Editors, 7 June 2012

In support of the ongoing policy of US drone strikes in Pakistan, US defence secretary Leon Panetta stated that "This [policy] is about our sovereignty as well". His comment came in response to claims by Pakistan that their sovereignty is at risk as a result of the drone attacks. Despite the...

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Afghanistan: Maintaining the Facade of the 'Mission'
Steve Nutt, 20 April 2012

In light of recent predictable events in Afghanistan, it is worth taking a long view of the NATO invasion and occupation to see if we can garner some sense of what the "mission" actually entails. The usual rhetoric concerns two related central matters: that NATO's presence is intended to prevent Afghanistan...

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Downplaying the Arms Trade: BBC Complicity
The Editors, 13 April 2012

David Cameron recently 'packed a plane full of business people' (in his own words) on a trip to Indonesia. Reporting on his 'trade tour of East and South East Asia', the news celebrated the securing of a '£326m Airbus Deal'. In a BBC report, it was pointed out that 'representatives from...

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An Attack on Iran Would Be Illegal. What Does the Media Say?
The Editors, 23 March 2012

The 'option' of a military attack on Iran by Israel, the UK and the US has been increasingly discussed in the UK media since 2011. Government threats of military action have come in various forms, with Israel warning of potential air strikes against Iran in the next few months, and Obama and...

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Sympathy for the Markets: How our Media Forgot the People of Greece
The Editors, 22 February 2012

Last night the BBC reported on its front page that Greece 'averts nightmare outcome'. Naturally, this meant that another bailout package had been agreed upon. The 'Who loses out?' link which appeared below the front page title directed to a page that does not mention Greek people or society. Rather, the article...

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Perspective Lacking as Allegations against Iran are Paraded through the Media
The Editors, 6 February 2012

Last week the Guardian's diplomatic editor, Julian Borger, reported on the 'increasing likelihood that Iran could carry out attacks in America or against US and allied targets around the world.' The claim was not his own of course; he was merely repeating without scrutiny that which was presented by James Clapper, the...

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How the UK Media Legitimise the Idea of a War on Iran
The Editors, 26 January 2012

The UK media has over the last three months obediently towed the line of western leaders in their increasingly hostile posturing towards Iran. Despite their reporting of (to give a few examples) a covert war on Iran, the entry of a US spy drone into Iranian airspace, and the recent assassination of...

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Venezuela in the UK Media, Part 2: Business Interests and the Refining of the Media Campaign
The Editors, 12 January 2012

Business Interests The presidency of Venezuela's Hugo Chavez, and those of other Latin American leaders whose policies are at odds with those dominant in Europe and the US, are often labelled as 'controversial' in BBC coverage, regardless of how overwhelming their election victories might be. Defining the news, business leaders or opposition...

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Venezuela in the UK Media, Part 1: The Opposition and US Interference
The Editors, 9 January 2012

'One of the most visible, vocal and controversial leaders in Latin America' (according to the BBC), Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez receives much attention from the British media. Frequent news reports, alluding to government 'attacks' on democracy and press freedom, and discussing the nationalisation of assets, create an impression of a 'regime' which...

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End of an Occupation: Whitewashing the Legacy of Iraq
The Editors, 16 December 2011

Iraq is now free, if you believe the news coverage of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's diplomatic visit to the US. In what seems to be hailed as a step forward, the BBC report that Maliki has 'called on US business leaders to invest in his country'. Maliki is reported as saying that...

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Dan Hodges: 'Keeping the Peace' by Calling for War
The Editors, 8 December 2011

In a low-point for the Telegraph blogosphere earlier this week, Dan Hodges wrote that Britain needs a 'Start the War Coalition' to function as a response to the existing Stop the War Coalition (StW) which has been working to prevent and stop British wars since 2001. Running with the Orwellian logic...

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For the BBC, the NHS Privatisation Debate is Over
Graham Bell, 6 December 2011

The BBC News website's reporting about changes to the NHS now, more than ever, ignores the voice of the overwhelming majority of UK citizens who do not want to see moves towards privatisation of the NHS. On the 5th December, reporting on David Cameron's speech about the "NHS-Industry" partnership plainly regurgitates...

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Language Creep: Iran and the Nuclear 'Threat'
The Editors, 27 November 2011

The IAEA report on the state of Iran's nuclear programme released on 9 November didn't quite present western governments with the doomsday scenario they had hoped for. The run-up to the report's publication became a platform for voices to be raised in the media calling for yet another war, as though...

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Media Focuses on Drama Rather than Ideas at Occupy London
The Editors, 20 November 2011

On 13th November a peace vigil was held at the Occupy London camp at St. Paul's Cathedral, remembering the victims on both sides of the ongoing occupation of Afghanistan. The evening consisted of speeches, song, poetry, and a reading of the names of the dead, remembering British soldiers and Afghan civilians. Matthew...

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BBC Reporting: Redefining Privatisation
Graham Bell, 17 November 2011

Opinion on privatisation is divided – viewed by some as a mechanism to help big business at the expense of the taxpayer, and by others as the introduction of competition and a process of freeing public services from state control (often cited in the media as inefficient and expensive). Whatever the...

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Afghanistan: Ten Years of the Grand Narrative
Steve Nutt, 30 September 2011

The war in Afghanistan is fast approaching its 10th anniversary. In recent weeks we have seen coordinated attacks in Kabul and a number of high profile assassinations by the "Taliban" or the "Haqqani Taliban", NATO's opponents in its increasingly confused and labyrinthine occupation. From the start, the war in Afghanistan has been...

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In Perspective: a Comparison of BBC Reporting with 1960's Propaganda
Graham Bell, 19 August 2011

Suez in Perspective, a Central Office of Information film made in 1960, four years after the Suez Canal Crisis, provides - based on what we now know - an imbalanced, and in some ways, false account of the 1956 British invasion of Port Said and the Suez Canal. The film, which...

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London riots: Disconnecting Cause and Effect
Graham Bell, 15 August 2011

Footage of the heaviest night of the London riots, Monday 8th August, showed frequent scenes of what were described as a ‘stand-offs’ between police and rioters. In cases where there was no stand-off, police appeared to watch while acts of looting and arson took place. During both the student protests of November...

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Blurring the Line Between Riot and Protest
Amy Woods, 8 August 2011

For a third day riots are underway in several boroughs of London. Reporting earlier this evening from Hackney, the BBC’s Phillipa Thomas repeatedly referred to the rioters as ‘protesters’. What they may be protesting against, she did not say. As the Met itself has suggested, the current riots are not connected...

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Nick Triggle, the NHS, and the Privatisation Debate
Graham Bell, 27 July 2011

The public outcry surrounding the News of the World phone hacking scandal provided an opportunity for those in power to implement the changes that have been in the making since the release of Andrew Lansley's White Paper, 'Equity and Excellence: Liberating the NHS', in July 2010. On 11th July David Cameron...

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The Issues of Murdoch's Influence in British Politics Have Yet to be Addressed
Graham Bell, 20 July 2011

The events of the past few weeks regarding the hacking scandal at the News of the World and the closure of the paper resulted in yesterday's hearing in which Rebekah Brooks, Rupert Murdoch and James Murdoch faced questioning from a panel of MPs about the phone hacking scandal. The British public...

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Shaping Public Opinion: The Media's Response to Iain Duncan Smith's Speech
Graham Bell, 3 July 2011

“Migrants ‘take the jobs from young Britons’”, ran the headline of the Telegraph’s website on 30th June , the night before Iain Duncan Smith’s speech on jobs and immigration. The subheadline elaborates: “Mass immigration poses the biggest threat to attempts to get millions of people off benefits, Iain Duncan Smith...

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Blair in Spotlight Urging for 'Plan' for Arab Spring
Amy Woods, 12 June 2011

In the new introduction to his autobiography, Tony Blair urges that Europe and the United States need a plan to “support” the Arab Spring, with further military action as required. Blair has been receiving a warm reception on his current promotional interview trail. While the public have made book-signings too difficult, the...

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The Libyan Baby Girl that Became a Wartime Propaganda Tool for Both Sides
Graham Bell, 8 June 2011

Arthur Ponsonby wrote in 1928 that "when war is declared, truth is the first casualty". Embedded journalists during war time are in some ways tools for the military of the countries they represent. As we saw with the invasion of Iraq, news reports represent one side, often censoring crucial information. Anything...

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Libya: A look at Ten Weeks of the War Media Machine
Graham Bell, 2 June 2011

News of the NATO extension for their mission in Libya came on the same day as news that over 700 civilians have died as a direct result of NATO strikes since the enforcement of a no-fly zone. Looking back to the start of the war, how did the BBC and...

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BBC News Selectively Report on Protests
Graham Bell, 16 May 2011

At least two rallies took place in central London on Saturday afternoon, both within short distance of the houses of Parliament. Opposite Downing Street on Whitehall was a rally entitled “End the Siege on Gaza – Free Palestine”, to commemorate the Nakba, or "catastrophe", the 1948 expulsion of half the population...

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Maintaining Western Fear After bin Laden's Death
Graham Bell, 4 May 2011

The news of Bin Laden’s death after the weekend has sparked a combination of celebration, suspicion, debate and conspiracy theories. In Washington, crowds gathered to chant “U-S-A, U-S-A” in a patriotic flag-waving display and celebrate Bin Laden’s death. In the UK, the BBC News showed a looping reel of images all...

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Cheerleading for the War on Libya
Graham Bell, 1 April 2011

When war (or 'humanitarian intervention') breaks out, the news very quickly becomes nothing more than a voice for the government. Embedded journalists provide updates to the country as though they are reporting from a war movie. Newspapers and news websites give us statistics on war planes and other machinery as though...

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How the Media Undermined the Message of the Masses
Helen Dring, 28 March 2011

The TUC dubbed Saturday's march a 'March for the Alternative', an alternative where “rich individuals and big companies have to pay all their tax, that the banks pay a Robin Hood tax and on in which we strain every sinew to create jobs and boost the sustainable economic growth that will...

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Libya Air Strikes: A Picture Paints a Thousand Words
Bob Rainmore, 22 March 2011

For this piece I will briefly compare the make up of two differing photo reels from the BBC and the Guardian’s website. The table below gives the percentage of pictures that a specific item appears in. Note that the percentages do not sum to 100% as some pictures contain more than...

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Lots of Attention on the Iranian Navy
Graham Bell, 22 February 2011

Today, the 22nd February, the BBC has given quite a lot of attention to the movement of Iranian warships through the Suez Canal. As scores of protesters are being killed by brutal regimes in Libya, Morocco and Bahrain, big news has been made about the seemingly insignificant passage of two Iranian...

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Framing the Debate on Cameron's Multiculturalism speech
Louise Brooks, 11 February 2011

During a speech in Munich last week, David Cameron initiated a strident attack on what he described as “state multiculturalism”. The Prime Minister linked existing policy to an increased risk of terrorism, signalling an apparent change in policy towards ethnic minority integration. Much of the media followed Cameron’s lead, focussing on the...

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Project Merlin: What They're not Telling you
Derek Suede, 11 February 2011

On the 9th February 2011, the conservatives announced that they will increase the bank levy from £1.7bn to £2.5bn, an increase of £800m. This is surely a step in the right direction and sounds like a clampdown on the banks at last. On its news website the BBC has posted a...

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Selective Reporting from the Chilcot Inquiry
Graham Bell, 21 January 2011

By the end of 2010, the US/UK led war in Iraq had left one million people dead and over four million without a home. For this, Tony Blair expressed his regrets on the 21st January, to which the members of the public said “too late”. After reporting this snippet of drama from...

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