It took Marr less than a minute to expose his Tory colours
40 seconds of The Andrew Marr Show on Sunday 20 September was probably enough for some people. But it was all the time it took for the host to make his position on the never-ending coronavirus (Covid-19) chaos clear. Because he didn’t bother holding the selfish and reckless Tory government to account. Instead, he said we should all be ‘less angry’ and ‘more generous’ in politics.
Marr: play nicely, children
In his opening segment, Marr talked about coronavirus. He mentioned the new rules and touched on the effect they’re having on some of us. But he also made his political views clear. Marr said:
Maybe this is just a time we somehow have to get through. And it may seem a strange thought for an interview show, but perhaps, to do that, we need a bit less anger in our politics – and a little bit more generosity.
Strange indeed. Given that the BBC‘s remit should be impartial, public service broadcasting, it shouldn’t be ‘generous’ to political parties. Not that Marr has the best record when it comes to being bias-free. As I wrote on Sunday 13 September, he spent a portion of that week’s show defending the government breaking the law. All in the name of alleged ‘impartiality’, of course.
But being less angry, and more generous, in politics is easy for Marr to suggest. I’m sure his £360,000 salary helps him to ‘keep calm and carry on’. For the rest of us, though, being generous is a bit more tricky. Not least when politicians have let coronavirus ravage the country and its citizens.
Generosity to whom?
Maybe Marr would like to tell the families of the coronavirus dead to be a bit more generous. Specifically, he might want to speak to the relatives of the 59% of deaths who were disabled people between 2 March and 14 July. Maybe he could explain why one organisation said disabled people had been “abandoned, forgotten and ignored” by policymakers. But I doubt he would, as we all now need to be ‘generous’, after all.
Marr might like to try and be generous about the 15,500 people who died of coronavirus in care homes, up to 4 September. He could be generous about the fact the government failed to protect these people at the start of the pandemic. Maybe he could be generous about how the government is going to force care homes to take coronavirus patients. Still feeling generous, Marr?
Read on...
He probably is. Because the health secretary Matt Hancock was on his show on 20 September – and my! Wasn’t he generous to him. Hardly a grilling, despite the chaos around Hancock. Marr being true to form, as always.
‘Be generous’: the phrase that sums up the corporate media
But ultimately, Marr ‘being generous’ sums up him and the corporate media. As I previously wrote for The Canary:
corporate journalists are essentially wedded to the establishment. They cannot bite the hand that feeds them. So instead they have to placate rather than agitate… In the interests of ‘balance’, the truth is no longer relevant. Even if that ‘balance’ presents lies as fact or opinion.
That same ‘balance’ is responsible for Marr asking us all to be ‘generous’. But when people have died unnecessarily, surely anger is the only correct emotion? Otherwise, the government that has put wealth before health will just continue to get away with it.
Featured image via BBC iPlayer – screengrab
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The entire media coverage has let the Tories off the hook. Where have you seen it reported that the delivery of PPE and dispatch and collection of test is being handled by Deloitte? The Tories have made sure their rich friends make a killing as people die. There has been gross incompetence at the heart of the operation since the outset, but the media focus constantly on the rules and how the people are obeying or failing to. Where is the reporting of the warnings provided by virologists and epidemiologists for years? Since the SARS outbreak, they have been saying it will happen again. Where is the reporting about the equally stark warnings from scientists that deforestation and devastation of the environment will bring such pandemics because all animals carry viruses and as we force them into contact with us, there are sure to be diseases. Where is the reporting of the fact that pursuit of money drives the environmental damage which makes pandemics more likely? Generous? We should be livid at the rich for their insouciant wilful carnage.
Spend just ONE MINUTE contemplating how the corporate media would have covered this catastrophe had it been PM Corbyn in charge.
We would have had names, faces, stories, every single day of the week. Corbyn would literally have personally murdered every single one of them.
The coverage isn’t even half-way, this is absolute, blatant pro-Establishment propagandising.
And with Tory-lite Steer Calmer waiting in the wings.
200,000 unnecessary premature UK civilian deaths since 2010. Of course, disabled and poor people are not that likely to vote for “Fuck You” Tories.
59%. That is beyond belief. 🙁
How sad the BBC and Marr have become. Biased as Fu*k and blatant about it, lies and more lies, never admitting anything other than to being right 100% of the time. Just look at all the shows that they call documentaries but really are just lies and deceit. Syrian chemical attacks staged by terrorists but blamed on Assad, The white helmets such heroes that no one that actually lives in the area they supposedly operate in have never heard of them or are afraid of them because they are also terrorists. Look at that shit panarama factual my arse documentary about Labour and Corbin being anti Semitic. All absolute garbage all absolutely false and all done on purpose to keep the Tory establishment nice and comfy.
Be nice says Marr ? Get fecking lost says I. The government have been without doubt absolutely fecking abysmal incompetent self serving nasty bastards who put money into the hands of their mates before the health of the people.
I suppose, in an attempt at ‘generosity’, one might suggest that the ‘lock down’ may have focussed the minds of the ‘unconsciously biased’ in the MSM so that they finally became aware of the perils of not being biased enough toward the Establishment. Their reasoning being that suddenly the State or Establishment, if you like, doesn’t seem to care that its political frontmen – the Bozo Brigade and the Starmer Troopers – have no public credibility. They are less and less necessary in Ukania’s political pantomime, where new conservative Labour is safe once more as a pressure release valve following any number of years of Tory misrule.
Corbyn had 2 elections and we got 5 years of Johnson.
Johnson must dream of a Corbyn return, how much easier life was for him back then.
I’m willing to give Starmer and and pretty strong shadow cabinet a chance.
Marr wears blue undercrackers! must be Tory. Burn him.