British Bloggers Grow Bolder (Unclear on the concept)

The Times [UK] ^ | February 15, 2005 | Rhys Blakely

[quidnunc]

Unlike their American peers, British bloggers are yet to take a major political scalp, but there are signs that the growing community of amateur online pundits is becoming an influential force.

Eason Jordan, the chief news executive of the American television channel, CNN, resigned last week following intense blog pressure after he had made remarks about US troops in Iraq killing journalists.

A study of British political blogs carried out by the Hansard Society last year criticised the UK’s main sites for pandering to "internet connoisseurs rather than ordinary members of the public".

"Political blogging in the UK is much more embryonic and exclusive than in the US," said Ross Ferguson, the new media manager at the Hansard Society.

"UK bloggers have yet to decide whether blogging is a means to promote  transparency in politics or another tool for  party campaigning."

In contrast, American bloggers have latched on to deeply emotive issues.

Mr Jordan's professional demise follows that of Dan Rather, the veteran CBS news presenter, who came under attack after levelling accusations over President George W Bush's military service. The subsequent probe by the channel, triggered by blog reports, led to the departure of four high-level executives from the network.  

-snip-

[quidnunc]

Bestbear wrote: The Jewish lady who took offence may have done so for one of two reasons: Firstly, some of us - and that includes me - rose to the defence of a very young Prince who was silly enough to wear a Nazi uniform at a fancy dress party. We did not approve of his choice, but we thought it was grossly OTT to ascribe anti-semitism to a young man who just wanted to be a bit outrageous;

HORSESCENSOREDT!

The crypto — and not-so-crypyo — fascists started to badger her the instant they found out she was Jewish.

[jjbrouwer]

I think if you just type "horseshit" it censors it for you.

[jjbrouwer]

Then again, I could be wrong...

[quidnunc]

jjbrouwer wrote: Then again, I could be wrong...

Yes, you are, but of course you're used to it by now.

[jjbrouwer]

I felt bad about all the abuse you've been getting here recently, so I handed you an easy putdown. I'll try not to let it happen again.

[quidnunc]

jjbrouwer wrote: I felt bad about all the abuse you've been getting here recently, so I handed you an easy putdown. I'll try not to let it happen again.

You're all heart, jj.

[jjbrouwer]

Yes. But remember, you owe me one.

[Bestbear]

Quidnunc wrote: The crypto — and not-so-crypyo — fascists started to badger her the instant they found out she was Jewish.

The Horsefeathers are all yours, mate! Yes, a couple of ST members belong to a small, but legal, far-right party. But in general, Nuttie was welcomed and her views appreciated. No one badgered her because she is Jewish. But, on the other hand, the fact that she is Jewish was not seen as a reason not to disagree with her when people felt she was mistaken.

[Bestbear]

And ... by the way... the owner of the site is Jewish, as you know. I also am of Jewish extracion. Neither of us has ever been on the recieving end of any discourtesy on that account, and for you to allege that ST is anti-semitic is a gross distortion. But I think you know that.

[Sterlingtimes]

Do we really need a war between British and US conservatives?

I was going to comment more specifically, but the ramblings are just so far fetched that I wouldn't know where to start.

British and American conservatives have to a degree parted company. Our priorities are now quite different.

In Britain, we have some special priorities:

the sovereignty of our nation has been compromised and is further threatened;

our traditions and institutions are threatened;

our Conservative Party has been in opposition for many years;

immigration is uncontrolled;

we are seeing the advent of a police state; and

we are still threatened by the IRA.

There are some odd conflicts of interest at FreeRepublic. Some Freepers are supporting NORAID whilst otherwise preaching a "war on terrorism". I mailed the moderator about that and received no comment. How can a US Conservative board post a press release from a terrorist organisation and let it stand?

I'm also perplexed by the suggest at FreeRepublic that the Brits are very racists whereas the Yanks are not. That represents an interesting position when shown on a continuum: if the British are totally racist and the Yanks are totally non-racist, who sits in between?

Fortunately, outside Freeperland a large amount of goodwill exists between our two nations. And conservatives across national boundaries should work together.

http://www.sterlingtimes.com/

[kingsurfer]

A new right wing is emerging on the back of EU intergration and immigration. WE now have 3 and a half mainstream parties: Labour, Conservatives, Liberal Democrats and the UK Independence Party.

[Bob]

In the UK, the people have the rights that are granted to them by the state; in the US, the people have all the rights they haven't ceded to the state.

That is a profound difference, and it affects the way people think about politics.

Do the British still commonly refer to themselves as subjects rather than citizens? I've always found the term subject somewhat disturbing.

[toadthesecond]

Do the British still commonly refer to themselves as subjects rather than citizens? Well this Brit hasn't heard the term British Subject for years. Also, my passport refers to British Citizens and British Nationals

[kingsurfer]

Officially we are citizens but in the presence of the Monarchy it is common to be referred to as a subject. Cannot say that happens evry often though.

[rrrod]

I took a look at both sites, FreeBritannia and Sterling Times.....both are interesting, a little difficult to navigate but thats due to my errors not the sites!...All the best to you.

[2111USMC]

Bookmark

[Bob]

Thanks for the info.

[Alkhin]

PING!

[Alkhin]

Andrew Ian Dodge at Dodgeblogium

Tim Daw at An Englishman's Castle

Samizdata (group blog)

And there are a few others too

[Alkhin]

You quidnunc, it IS possible that MadIvan HAS A LIFE AWAY from the computer! He's got a couple of other sites that he manages, so I imagine THAT keeps him pretty busy.