At 06:51 12/07/2011, you wrote:
>I have a feeling that TANSTAAFL may apply to News International's sudden
>decision to withdraw it's undertaking to hive off Sky News for a few years.
>Wasn't it convenient that it was announced just before David Cameron would
>have had to face a very hostile debate in the House of Commons thus forcing
>a referral to the Competition Committee - where it would have had to go in
>the first place if Cameron and Hunt had not accepted the NI assurances in
>the first place?
>Anuone else share my concerns?
>
>Mary Hawking
I think you're misunderstanding both the politics and practical
implications of the situation.
This is not primarily a party political issue, though it's true the
LibDems have never really had a cosy relationship with RM.
However particularly since the expenses scandal the whole
relationship between politicians and the media has been ripe for
revolution. The BBC was neutered after Iraq, but the print media and
Sky in particular still enjoyed huge freedom.
All the anger and desire for revenge has now come home to roost.
Some is well deserved, but we need to be rather careful about where
we end up. The centre ground rarely wins in situations like this and
our democracy may be the worse if we lose critical press freedoms.
OTOH I certainly support legal rights to privacy, and only the
mildest tinkering with defamation laws which do not in reality hamper
scientific debate.
Not a time for party politicking, however irritating the PM can be in
his views on GPs and the NHS.
J
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