December 2008
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Michael Burleigh
Channel 4's understanding of the word Sorry
Tuesday 22nd July 2008
Last night some oafish hulk from Channel 4 tried to bully his way through an interview on BBC2 with Emily Maitlis and one of the eminent scientists who had been misrepresented by a Channel 4 documentary series the hulk had commissioned that sought to discredit the notion of climate change. All the tricks of the trade were on show. Little beady eyes tightened into a moue of indignation that he had been dragged into the spotlight. Talking over the other guest the C4 commissioning editor made the completely irrelevant claim that the BBC itself had been encouraged to be more "radical" in its approach to programming. This was all designed to distract from the shoddy ways in which interviews had been cut to distort what the scientists were saying. Like the modern political class there was no sense that this might warrant anybody's RESIGNATION, no, you just bluster your way through in the hope that nobody is really watching. The truth doesn't matter so long as it is 'radical'.
9:27 am
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COMMENTS
Stefan Denis
July 22nd, 2008
10:07 AM
10:07 AM
A couple of points. If, as you say, C4 was involved in fraudulent misrepesentation, then it ought to pay a hefty price. All the more so as, in doing this, they have let off the hook those people who make disreputable claims in favour of the "human agency is a major factor causing climate change" thesis.
Secondly, applying the approach you recommend in your post, will you, Professor Burleigh,now retract your deeply misleading and erroneous remarks entered under the title 7/7 and pointed out to you by T Wilkinson?? I think that your readers are owed a reply on this - and I look forward to reading one. Otherwise people may start to think you are little better than the "oafish hulk" from C4.
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