Madeleine McCann: Gerry On The Telly And It Could Be U
“MADELEINE: It’s not too late says mum.”
The front page of the Express contains a “Dramatic Plea”.
But it’s not dramatic so much as it is desperate. “It’s not too late, please give her back,” says Kate McCann.
As ever the Express tells readers that Mrs McCann is a GP. Gerry McCann, we learn is a “consultant cardiologist”.
Says she: “Every day is hard. Every day is very difficult… The important thing is getting Madeleine back and we hope that what we are doing increases the chance of that.”
What’s The Story?
Indeed, that is the important thing. It is the only thing. But the press want more.
Says Gerry McCann: “We have a mix of very positive days, when we have done big things and achieved things or big events with the campaign, but we are aware these things are secondary.”
He’s right. Of course he is. But the press have been pointing fingers at the police, gawping at “creepy” men, listening to anyone with a paedophile story, looking for bodies and signs. They have not been on the trail of Madeleine. They follow the McCanns around, first Spain, then Germany, then the UK, the Vatican and Morocco. They are watching the parents. The parents are the story. And we are invited to look on like voyeurs.
We can wear braclets. Find Madeleine is this year’s Make Poverty History campaign.
Infotainment
The Sun says Gerry McCann is to appear at the Edinburgh TV Festival. No, not because he’s given us hours of great telly. Although he is taking the slot once occupied by Simon Cowell and Michael Barrymore. Gerry will be “quizzed” by Newsnight presenter Kirsty Walk on the media campaign to find Madeleine McCann.
Peter Barron, organiser of the event, rated the Find Madeleine campaign a “new and moving phenomenon”. What was that about good telly?
But it’s scaring the children. The Star says an appeal to find Madeleine is being screened before cinema showings of U-rated Shrek The Third.
Children with faces full of popcorn and crisps hear that Madeleine was “snatched” from her bed. “Madeleine’s parents are devastated, but they haven’t given up hope.”
A mum says it’s “unfair” to show this to children. “It makes them fear that they too could be abducted.”
It spreads the fear. It creates anxiety. And it shows no sign whatsoever of finding Madeleine nor the person or persons who might have taken her…
Posted: 4th, July 2007 | In: Madeleine McCann Comments (669) | Follow the Comments on our RSS feed: RSS 2.0 | TrackBack | Permalink
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July 4th, 2007 at 2:53 pm
Queen b, you said it better than I did. The Find Madeleine advert should’ve chosen their audience better, i.e. adults. (But if I knew that the theater would be showing such a thing, I’ll go buy some more popcorn, go to the loo, anything, anything to avoid it, heehee)
July 4th, 2007 at 2:21 pm
The mccanns advert should have been directed at the adults, the ones that didnt send their kids to the movies on their own, and it should have driven home the importance of not leaving kids unattended. It is not madeleines fault, any of this, she is out there somewhere wandering where her mum and dad are. where ever she may be, hidden, kidnapped, snatched, lost, ……………. she is not where she should be because of the negligence of team mccann (mcscam, scam mccann, very rich mccann)
July 4th, 2007 at 2:13 pm
Jan (USA) from what most of us can gather neither the McCanns nor their supporters seem to think they have done anything that paved the way for a possible abduction. They seemed only too willing to leave the 3 children alone evening after evening.
Also in their keenness for a campaign they have gone against police advice too.
Meta , rather would it not be fairer to say that Madeleine has suffered more than enough, she may be a child BUT she is still a feeling being, and that seems to be something the McCanns camp can’t quite get their head round when the sympathy is to be directed to the parents. IF she has been abducted by paedophiles , her suffering won’t be over for many a long year, if ever.
July 4th, 2007 at 1:55 pm
Gossip. gossip, gossip, and more gossip. When will it ever end.? If you cannot say anything good why say something bad? I am just glad you are not in the Mc Cann shoes—those people have suffered enough. May they soon be rewarded by the safe return of little Madeleine.
July 4th, 2007 at 1:48 pm
“A mum says it’s “unfair” to show this to children. “It makes them fear that they too could be abducted.”….
It IS unfair to scare other children with the possibility that they too may be abducted. They should not watch the McCanns campaigning for help to find Madeleine right now. The McCanns should not stop their campaign either. Now that the McCanns have experienced having their child “snatched” from them and they’ve had a chance to think about all the things they could have or would have or should have done differently, perhaps they could share their thoughts and experiences with other parents. I think they’d get more sympathy from other parents if they approched their campagin not only as a plea for help to find Madeleine but also to openly and honestly talk to parents about what they should do to protect their children from being abducted.
July 4th, 2007 at 1:29 pm
it seems as if more and more bloggers are changing their tune, which I have no problem with, as for the advert well if the kids are old enough to watch that big scary ogre (which slightly resembles mr Mc when he is very cross) then they are old enough to be made aware of the importance of making sure their parents never leave them alone.
July 4th, 2007 at 1:28 pm
Well said, Molly!
I think the showing of the Madeleine ad at the Shrek movie was meant to pull the heartstrings and mobilize the mums in the theater and to reinforce the idea of an abduction; except that the whole thing backfired when the children watching Shrek became upset and frightened. And a good thing too. If it weren’t for the backlash, there’d be Find Madeleine ads everywhere, like Muzak — inescapable. I hope this episode will silence all those concerned/sympathetic/hysterical mothers who have said that the McCanns are doing the right thing publicizing their abduction theory (that’s what the campaign boils down to).
And yes, I know I will be slayed here for saying such things, but hey, at least I’m not driving a burning car into an airport.
July 4th, 2007 at 1:00 pm
Ah, but fear and anxiety are what sells newspapers… If there is one thing that you can absolutely 100% guarantee in this life it is that any story which contains possible paedophile plots, kidnapped children and lots of photo opportunities is a best seller. It buys into and validates our secret fears - just like all those urban myths of children vanishing from their mother’s side and being recovered ‘just in the nick of time’ with their hair dyed and clothes changed by the gypsies. Plenty of these stories abound - except when it comes to actually validating them via news or police reports!
Perhaps this is why the McCanns have chosen to insist that Madeleine was abducted from their apartment right from the start … there is no actual proof or evidence to suggest that this is any more the case than some of the more lurid ‘McCanns have murdered her/hidden her/accidentally killed her’ scenarios, yet day after day after day the British media persist in informing us that Madeleine was ’snatched from her bed’ as if it were a cast iron, proven fact.
Fortunately I have every confidence that the Portuguese police, underfunded and understaffed though they are are not as stupid as to be blinded by the apartment abduction scenario, so ardently promoted by Gerry and Kate McCann, and that the truth (including the fate or whereabouts of Madeleine) will eventually be discovered by this same derided force.
Meanwhile the outrageous publicity continues … what possible, valid, reason can be given for showing the Madeleine advert before Shrek??? Is she likely to be in the audience??? Are the children in the audience likely to see her at school??? Are the parents of the children in need of informing about her disappearance (in other words have they been living in a sealed cave for the last two months)??? … No - surely the only POSSIBLE reason for this would be to attract more people to donate more money!!!