Politicians and ‘Personalisation’ in perspective

Recent events have put a new spin on the old saying: ‘if you can’t stand the heat, get out of the kitchen’. First, Ed Miliband was ridiculed for being photographed in an austere kitchen that turned out to be his spare one. Then David Cameron made a kitchen-based confession to the BBC that he would […]

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Power, journalists and sleaze

The Man in the White Suit In 1997 Martin Bell, BBC war reporter, became ‘the man in the white suit’. At the behest of Alistair Campbell Bell stood as an independent candidate in Tatton, one of the safest Conservative seats in the country, and trounced Neil Hamilton, who was embroiled in the so-called ‘cash for […]

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Still life in the old attack dogs yet?

  A journalistic cliché we’re likely to hear a great deal more- and it has already been said- is that this General Election is the most important in a generation. But it is often difficult to gauge the significance of a particular election until sometime after the event. What is not in doubt is the […]

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Pints and pratfalls: for UKIP, all publicity is good publicity

Nigel Farage has claimed his comments about repealing racial discrimination legislation in the workplace were “wilfully misrepresented”. Viewers can see his remarks in context in the Channel 4 documentary Things We Won’t Say About Race That Are True. Whether the political and media furore represented fair comment or rough treatment is a matter for debate, […]

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The leaders’ debates: three into seven might not go

  After a great deal of horse trading, a timetable for the election debates has been set, culminating in a head-to-head between the prime minister, David Cameron, and his opposite number Ed Miliband a week before voters go to the polls. If all agree (and this is still not certain), this will settle a process […]

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