25 November 2011 - Ex-council boss 'says' something he didn't say

30 August 2011 - Irish cuts and tax rises: positive effect?
29 July 2011 - Terry Smith: 'there haven't really been any cuts yet'
5 May 2011 - William Hague's plans for the Middle East
12 April 2011 - John Humphrys on Iceland
8 April 2011 - John Humphrys promotes government cuts

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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Financial Sector Pushes for 'Improved Relationship' with Parliament in The Times
The Editors, 4 February 2012

'We can't do business in the UK, say top bankers', claims the front page of Saturday's Times. After a week in which chief executive of RBS, Stephen Hester, backed away from a £1m bonus, while his predecessor, Fred Goodwin, was stripped of his knighthood, the lead article by Patrick Hosking and...

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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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Political Theatre: Using the Media to Campaign for Tax Cuts
Graham Bell, 26 September 2011

Early in September the BBC news reported on those calling for the 50p tax rate to be cut, by giving an enormous amount of attention on television, radio and online news to a letter sent to the Financial Times and signed by twenty people who wanted the top rate to be...

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The Telegraph and Policy Exchange make Joint Attack on Public Sector
Amy Woods, 13 May 2011

Earlier this week an editorial in The Telegraph pronounced that: “The overwhelming majority of public sector workers are significantly better paid than those in the private sector – and the differential is actually increasing.” The paper was citing a report released by the conservative think tank Policy Exchange which claims findings...

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Economic Colonisation: The Dehumanising Effect of the Media
Graham Bell, 11 May 2011

Regardless of wider colonial aims, there are always a few imperative tasks for imperial powers. These tasks normally include stirring up national pride and fear, as well as dehumanising the indigenous population. This justifies the role of the invader to their people, as they implement their ‘superior’ ways on the ‘lesser’...

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Will the Suggestions of the Vickers Commision be Taken Seriously?
Ronan Jack, 20 April 2011

In recent years, we have seen a massive financial meltdown due to over-lending, over-borrowing and poor regulation. The Government believes that the current system of financial regulation is fundamentally flawed and needs to be replaced with a framework that promotes responsible and sustainable banking, where regulators have greater powers to curb...

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Iceland Shows us the Alternative: Public says 'no' to Bailout
Ronan Jack, 15 April 2011

Anyone trying to understand the issue about Icelandic banks and what the Icelandic people owe/don't owe/may owe the UK could be forgiven for being hopelessly confused from following various media reports. Do they or don't they owe the UK money? How much? Have they defaulted on a debt by voting...

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Debt Redistribution is the Aim, Scaremongering is the Means
Ronan Jack, 9 April 2011

As the financial crisis staggers on, lurching from country to country like a drunk from one lamppost to the next, the gap between reality and what the media tell us expands. Across the world, there is a significant restructuring taking place, as financial institutions and the wealthy try to push the costs...

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'There's no Money Left': a Misconception Fuelled by the Press
Ronan Jack, 6 April 2011

'Dear chief secretary, I'm afraid to tell you there's no money left. Kind regards and good luck.' The now-famous note left for his successor in May 2009 by Liam Byrne, the outgoing chief secretary to the Treasury, was apparently intended as a joke. Almost a year later, as we start...

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The Reporting After the March 2011 Budget
Ronan Jack, 24 March 2011

This March 2011 budget was always intended to be fiscally neutral, not changing the government's broad economic strategy. The context is that last June's budget set out the policy direction of deficit reduction, funded largely by public spending cuts and to a lesser extent by tax increases. In this budget, the...

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Government Deficit: The Success of Framing the Debate
Ronan Jack, 22 March 2011

The coming budget has been prefaced by much comment about budget deficits and the national debt. Almost every comment from a government minister includes some variant on the theme of having inherited a massive and catastrophic deficit which must be tackled before we submerge under a sea of debt. The government...

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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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