The intensified Israeli military operations in Gaza are an attempt by Netanyahu to project strength amid perceived political vulnerability, argues RAMZY BAROUD
Latest editorial
Nothing new under the Sun
News UK boss David Dinsmore is keen for newspapers to avoid regulation under the new Online Safety Bill. SOLOMON HUGHES reports from the Tory Party conference fringe
MARK FAIRHURST highlights the main issues facing officers in a long neglected service, and raised by front-line delegates at POA conference last week, including understaffing, violence, bullying and the ongoing denial of workers’ right to strike
A bizarre on-air rant by Sebastian Gorka, Trump’s head of counter-terrorism, shines a light on the present state of transatlantic relations, says NICK WRIGHT
Head of education, campaigns and organising for the General Federation of Trade Unions HENRY FOWLER explains why it is launching a fund to support trades councils and give them access to a new range of courses and resources
While working people face austerity, arms companies enjoy massive government contracts, writes ARTHUR WEST, exposing how politicians exaggerate the Russian threat to justify spending on a sector that has the lowest employment multiplier
ANYA COOK reports from the Newcastle citizens’ assembly, where over 240 people gathered to create a people’s manifesto ahead of next year’s local elections – part of former mayor Jamie Driscoll’s Majority movement
While claiming to target fraud, Labour’s snooping Bill strips benefit recipients of privacy rights and presumption of innocence, writes CLAUDIA WEBBE, warning that algorithms with up to 25 per cent error rates could wrongfully investigate and harass millions of vulnerable people
FORMER Sun editor David Dinsmore told delegates at a packed Tory conference fringe meeting that his newspapers are vital for “nuance” in politics while social media is causing “polarisation.”
Dinsmore, who is now chief operating officer of Rupert Murdoch’s News UK business, also claimed that the Sun was partly responsible for the success of Britain’s vaccination effort as he demanded his newspapers be free from new internet regulations in the interests of “democracy.”
Dinsmore was addressing a meeting at the Conservative conference in Manchester organised by the Digital Tories group alongside Damian Collins, the Tory MP chairing the committee of MPs inspecting the new Online Safety Bill, which will regulate web content.
Dinsmore began his speech by reminding delegates that Murdoch’s News UK had in fact paid for the event, funding the free beer and wine for delegates.
“Great to see you all and great to see me considering I’m buying the drinks,” Dinsmore told the meeting.
He then claimed that the Sun was crucial to Britain’s anti-Covid vaccination effort, saying then health secretary Matt Hancock had contacted the Sun to ask them to “get your readers together to get these jabs into people’s arms.
“So Victoria Newton, the editor of the Sun, came up with ‘Jabs Army,’ launched it on New Year’s Day and three weeks later had 60,000 people signed up to marshal at vaccination centres.
“Incredible thing: I think it set, or helped set, the UK on the path to becoming one of the best-vaccinated countries on the planet and put us in a great place.”
Dinsmore made no mention of the NHS. He also claimed that social media caused division but his newspapers brought “nuance.”
He said: “One of the unintended consequences of social media is that, while it has obviously democratised the media for people and everyone now has a voice — and a louder voice at that — what is has done is caused polarisation,” so “it is vital that we have that professional media sitting in the middle where we can give a platform to nuance.”
News UK was paying for the drinks so Dinsmore could make his claims about the Sun, because Murdoch’s firm wants to make sure the Online Harms Bill being inspected by Damian Collins’s committee of MPs doesn’t limit its newspapers.
Dinsmore explained to Collins and the delegates that “one of the things we are particularly exercised about is ensuring there is a journalistic carve-out in the new law so Facebook or other platforms don’t suspend content from newspapers like the Sun because they think it breaks new online ‘hate’ laws.”
Dinsmore said: “We don’t and can’t end up being cancelled for that nuance because the platforms are taking a super safe route as a result of that legislation.”
More from this author
Labour’s pop-loving front bench have snaffled up even more music tickets worth thousands apiece, reports SOLOMON HUGHES
Secret consultation documents finally released after the Morning Star’s two-year freedom of information battle show the Home Office misrepresented public opinion, claiming support for policies that most respondents actually strongly criticised as dangerous and unfair, writes SOLOMON HUGHES
SOLOMON HUGHES highlights a 1995 Sunday Times story about the disappearance of ‘defecting Iraqi nuclear scientist.’ Even though the story was debunked, it was widely repeated across the mainstream press, creating the false – and deadly – narrative of Iraqi WMD that eventually led to war
Despite Labour’s promises to bring things ‘in-house,’ the Justice Secretary has awarded notorious outsourcing outfit Mitie a £329 million contract to run a new prison — despite its track record of abuse and neglect in its migrant facilities, reports SOLOMON HUGHES
Similar stories
What’s behind the sudden wave of centrist ‘understanding’ about the real nature of Starmerism and its deep unpopularity? SOLOMON HUGHES reckons he knows the reasons for this apparent epiphany
Cobryn's Peace & Justice Project says decision not to pursue inquiry is a ‘deeply disappointing and shameful indictment of how media barons can influence the government’
