Laura Kuenssberg just likened Polanski to Farage in a new low

Over the weekend, on 28 February, BBC News published an article about how Zack Polanski and Nigel Farage are actually quite similar. If you think about it. Honest.

The Laura Kuenssberg-penned ‘in-depth’ article ran with the headline:

Polanski and Farage don’t agree. But they have more in common than you might think.

Any long-time readers or, indeed, casual observers will know that we at the Canary aren’t exactly massive fans of Kuenssberg. You know, what with her being a mouthpiece for lowest-common-denominator state propaganda and all. However, this article in particular really did take the absolute piss.

Let’s take a read, shall we?

Poor Polanski gets the Kuenssberg treatment

Kuenssberg starts off strong in her introduction, setting the tone for the piece:

Before you scream, burst out laughing, or think I have lost my marbles, of course, there are very big differences between them.

The Greens talk about a climate emergency. Reform UK calls the government green plans, “net stupid zero”.

Are we genuinely saying ‘a climate emergency now? I wonder which climate emergency he’s talking about? Might the overwhelming scientific consensus back him up in talking about it?

We then move on to one of the key parts of Kuenssberg’s argument:

Both parties have been growing incredibly quickly, attracting thousands upon thousands of new members.

In an era when many members of the public are sick of politicians, they are both doing something right, and pulling people in.

They’re… both successful leaders for alternative parties. My Lord, the BBC is really bringing out the big guns. This is the kind of insightful political analysis I don’t pay my TV license for.

Shock links of politics and media

We really get into the thick of it when Kuenssberg notices that politics and the media are closely related:

Having seen them both with members of the public, not just in the TV studio or in Parliament, both men appear to enjoy campaigning. […]

Conveniently for the politicians (and not true for all), they both appear to rather like the attention.

They are both nimble on social media, and their parties spend huge amounts of time and effort on making sure their feeds are pumped full of fresh content.

Sure, I suppose not all politicians enjoy the limelight. However, manipulating that media attention is what being a politician… is. They’ve also learned to do it on the computer, in a way that was only invented three decades ago. Admittedly, that’s fairly quick, in political terms.

Sordid pasts

Both politicians also have histories with other parties:

Both Farage and Polanski like to be seen as disrupters, intent on shaking things up.

But it’s worth remembering they both have histories with other political parties that go back some years.

Once upon a time, Nigel Farage was a Conservative, although he disputes whether he was offered a safe Tory seat or, as others recall, went on the hunt for one.

Zack Polanski wanted to stand as a Lib Dem MP, and was cross when he wasn’t put forward.