Something to Draw Your Eye

As you know, every now and then I like to draw your attention to sites where distortions seem to be a habit. For a short while I have been observing the work being done on BBCEye. It has proved a very enlightening read, with a certain right-wing bias (some might say extreme right-wing, but I'm a little bit more diplomatic as you know). As is usually the case, facts tend to get overlooked to support a certain political standpoint. What surprises me in this case, is that the writer is a lover of history. Now as a historian myself, I cannot abide a fellow historian failing at the most basic skill of any historian, namely checking references and backing up your argument. This is clearly not the case on much of what is written. Let me give you an example:

'Brown man not in the news

Michael Brown, the LibDums largest donor, has been arrested for fraud, perjury, forgery and deception. Not that a BBC still desperate to shift the cash-for-peerages spotlight onto the Conservatives would tell you.'

Now, this intrigued me. I have read the paper today, and there it is clear as day....Mr Brown is indeed being held in Spain. So I checked BBC to see if they had overlooked it. Seemingly not. They cover the story quite clearly here. Well, I can let that pass, Imean we all make mistakes don't we?? Then I read about Norman Kember (otherwise known as 'the ingrate' at BBCEye). This slur is based on the assertion that Mr Kember did not thank his rescuers enough. What the right-wing media fail to acknowledge (surprise, surprise) is that the organisation Mr Kember worked for, Christian Peacemaker Teams, had already made an official statement of gratitude as well as Mr Kember thanking 'those who played a part in my rescue'.

However, I have saved the best until last. Check this one out:

Good news is no news

Allied casualties in Iraq hit a record low last month. Something else for the alleged news organization that calls itself the BBC to ignore.

Good news indeed. Try selling that as a good news item to the relatives of those who died in March. I'm sure they will think it is excellent news. Good work BBCEye.