(OFF) OMG USA improving???

Mike Holmes fofp at STAFFMAIL.ED.AC.UK
Thu Dec 15 04:50:51 EST 2011


On 14/12/2011 13:10, Jonathan Smith wrote:

> I am not in England but, and I know I am not supposed to say this, Mathew
> Wright really should know better than to make jokes like that, surely?
>
> He is not in league with the totally offensive Jeremy Clarkson, who can get
> away with anything because he is Cameron's buddy. I don't have problem with
> Matthew Wright and he did appear to apologise but some people, Clarkson in
> particular, deserves being attacked by email-- he NEEDS it.

This time around anyway, Clarkson was quoted out of context. He made a 
joke, mainly at the expense of the BBC balance requirement. By quoting 
half the sentence, the newspapers made it something it wasn't.

I doubt Clarkson will be shedding any real tears though. He has a book 
to promote. Any publicity is good publicity when you're selling something.

I think Matthew Wright was slightly funny given that it's decades since 
the last murder there. Perhaps it having been only a week since the 
murder, a little more thought could have been given to how the family 
would feel if they were watching. I think it fails the "If you wouldn't 
want your mum to see you on the front page for this, don't do it" test.

Again though, Wright is in the business of selling controversy, because 
it brings in viewers. Occasionally judging things badly is presumably 
seen as a hazard of his trade.

FoFP

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