Madeleine McCann, Russell Brand And Decapitated Cyclists
MADDIE WATCH - Anorak’s at-a-glance guide to press coverage of Madeleine McCann, Kate McCann and Gerry McCann, starring Matthew Parris, headless cyclists and Russell Brand.
The Guardian tells us:
A Times article about decapitating cyclists was the most complained about last year to industry watchdog, the Press Complaints Commission, receiving a record number of complaints about British newspapers and magazines.
Hats off to that story, and take care to untie the chinstrap first, readers.
The PCC, publishing its annual report today, said it received 4,698 complaints overall last year, a rise of 8% on 2007.
Yay!
The most complained about article was a comment piece by Matthew Parris, published on 27 December, 2007, in the Times and headlined “What’s smug and deserves to be decapitated?”.
Matthew Parris, the erudite, elfin and likeable Times columnist was the cause of complaint?
It attracted 584 complaints, mostly from cycling enthusiasts objecting to the suggestion that piano wire be strung across country lanes to decapitate cyclists as a punishment for littering the countryside, the PCC said.
That was a suggestion? Oh, ****. Parris can be too subtle for his own good.
And Parris had some stiff competition, literally:
The article beat the Daily Mail’s coverage of the Jonathan Ross and Russell Brand “Sachsgate” affair into second place, it drew 92 complaints.
In yer face, Brand. Is it too late to give Parris his BBC2 slot? And how much will it take for Parris to replace Ross at the Beeb? He’s cheap, once working for ITV for a pittance.
Coverage of the Mumbai terror attacks in the Express, Daily Star, Sun, the Times, Daily Telegraph and the Independent drew a total of 90 complaints.
But not in the Guardian, where the body count was illustrated by a selection of missing socks.
A Sun story “beaten up by two grandads” drew 33 complaints, while the fifth most complained about the story “Families must sell land for gypsy campsites” appeared in the Daily Express.
Any other complaints?
More recently the Formula One president, Max Mosley, called into question the very existence of press self-regulation in the wake of his privacy victory at the High Court over allegations in the News of the World that he was involved in a “sick Nazi orgy”. He told a Commons culture, media and sport committee looking into press standards it was like “letting the Mafia run the local police station”.
During the same hearing Gerry McCann, the father of missing toddler Madeleine, called for more stringent regulation of the press and criticised the PCC for having Express editor Peter Hill sit on its board when his paper had “so flagrantly” libelled him and his wife, Kate.
Madeleine McCann - it’s all just old news…
Posted: 19th, March 2009 | In: Madeleine McCann, Media Comments (12) | Follow the Comments on our RSS feed: RSS 2.0 | TrackBack | Permalink
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March 27th, 2009 at 8:44 am
…well at least that is a “sighting” of sorts……A kind of…….sick of the “sighting” …
March 27th, 2009 at 8:29 am
And the news this morning included posters being torn down and thrown away in PdL.
March 25th, 2009 at 8:47 am
I put a link up in yesterday’s post PeterMac; it does seem rather late in the day, doesn’t it?
March 25th, 2009 at 8:24 am
According to one of the on-line papers the McCs are going to start a new campaign in PdL.
I think this is taking the “Softly softly” approach a little too far.
March 25th, 2009 at 12:01 am
Would you like a cup of tea while you’re waiting? It might be a long night.
Moderator Thankyou for the kind thought Yampster! I have now sourced the info I needed and shall remove the post. I rather think Java coffee might be more appropriate
March 21st, 2009 at 4:17 am
Why has my post No. 5 been removed without explanation again ?
March 21st, 2009 at 3:35 am
3 ladonna Says:
March 19th, 2009 at 5:58 pm
when is someone gonna find out the name of the strangers and where they live and get madeleine mccann home to kate and gerald?
***************************
Is it not possible that she is better off where she is ?
March 21st, 2009 at 12:12 am
Doubt Kate and Gerry want her.. she was found over a year ago by the way. It wasn’t abduction, it was a rare case of spiritual possession. Of course, that was taken care of a few months ago and there isn’t an evil spirit to speak of now, but how long do you think the end of the story will keep money coming to the Mccanns?
March 19th, 2009 at 8:58 pm
Promise of a million dollars for the McC - if they tell the truth see Joana
March 19th, 2009 at 5:58 pm
when is someone gonna find out the name of the strangers and where they live and get madeleine mccann home to kate and gerald?
March 19th, 2009 at 12:06 pm
I well remember the one from the 1980s “son of ex-PC found guilty of XX”, and on that occasion it turned out that his father had once, very many years before, and for a short time served in the Royal Hong Kong Police.
They do get paid by the word.
March 19th, 2009 at 9:43 am
The Press can be crap but sometimes an investigative journalist will dig and ferret out what is really going on - with or without a Deepthroat. In the case of the McCanns, in my view, the law suits, threatened and actual have deterred such honest journalists.
This week I read a headline that said “J K Rowlings mid-wife responsible for baby death”. This was sad and tragic but Rowling’s involvement extended to using the midwife some years previously. Oh, how we are manipulated