Want to stop funding hate? Nectar just made that a whole lot harder [IMAGES]
On 15 August, Nectar announced on Facebook that it was teaming up with The Daily Mail. But it was soon left regretting that decision.
For those who don’t know, Nectar is a loyalty programme which allows customers of companies like Sainsbury’s and Argos to collect points when they shop. And The Mail, according to Nectar at least, is apparently a source of “ground-breaking journalism, incisive debate, [and] must-read features”. But in the comments section below Nectar’s announcement, many apparent cardholders begged to differ.
Serious questions raised
Nectar itself admitted it was “experiencing a very high volume of questions” as a result of the decision. But it seemed there was one main question on many people’s minds: ‘Why?’
And as we can see above, Nectar seemed to have the same answer for everyone; that there’s apparently “a large crossover” between Nectar users and Mail readers.
But it seems many people took offence at that suggestion:
Read on...
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And some people argued that cutting up Nectar cards was not enough:
No. Just no.
The Daily Mail has previously tried, and failed, to disown its most extreme writers (like Katie Hopkins). But the paper’s reputation is much bigger and uglier than one writer alone.
At the height of the refugee crisis, as the body of toddler Alan Kurdi was washing up on Turkish shores, The Daily Mail published a cartoon by Stanley McMurtry, depicting refugees as marauding soldiers running into Europe alongside rats:
The image was a direct parallel to antisemitic cartoons published by Nazi propagandists in 1930s Germany:
The Daily Mail never apologised or retracted that cartoon.
But this was nothing new. Because in 1938, as the Jewish population of Germany was fleeing from the Nazis, this was the welcome they received from The Daily Mail:
And The Daily Mail didn’t only propagandise against the incoming Jewish families. It also spent years cheerleading for fascism in general, and Hitler in particular. In 1934, the paper’s owner Viscount Rothermere wrote an editorial personally inviting Britain to embrace both:
A monumental cock-up
The Daily Mail is the armpit of the UK press. It preaches fear and hatred to 1.4 million print readers and 15 million online readers every day. And its vile reputation precedes it.
By teaming up with this paper, Nectar has essentially given the middle finger to its cardholders, saying: ‘Bigoted gutter journalism? Yes please.’
Fortunately, the Facebook comments above show Britain won’t take the insult lying down.
Get Involved!
– Support Stop Funding Hate. And read more Canary articles about The Daily Mail here.
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Featured image via The Canary
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