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Aren't we all in this together?

Submitted by chrisgaynor on Tue, 10/12/2010 - 13:22
BBC Politics journalist Andrew Marr on the red...

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RANTING public service broadcasting hack Andrew Marr has slammed bloggers and citizen journalists labelling them as "seedy, single, and very very drunk."

According to the Daily Mail, Marr's public rant was aired at the Cheltenham Literary Festival - where he defended 'his trade' by claiming that in future, our children's children will be up for paying for online news and comment.

Unfortunately, while Marr, 51, claims that bloggers and citzen hacks will never replace hacks or, dare I say, "super hacks," Marr has forgot one vital ingredient in why these same people, seedy, single, drunk, angry young men, are needed more than ever by the cowardice British media.

Hacks, or even super hacks, cannot survive without tip offs of stories. In fact, the days of go-getting journalists are ten a penny. You only have to read the drivel, politically numbed, celebrity-re-hashed news tripe that gets churned out of the British media everyday. Who wants to pay for something that will be tonight's Fish and Chip wrapping paper? Yum Yum...

Although Marr has a point that there are some bloggers, and citizen journalists who are rubbish, excuse the pun, the work of an independent blogger, (dare I say journalist) and citizen journalist is vital in any democracy. Some bloggers often ask questions that some journalists can't or refuse to ask - (that's directed at Marr himself) and, not forgetting the fact that Marr, and others at the bloatedly-excessed Brtish Broadcasting Corporation are indeed funded by "some" of those very same people.

Marr apparently said: "

‘OK - the country is full of very angry people. Many of us are angry people at times. Some of us are angry and drunk. But the so-called citizen journalism is the spewings and rantings of very drunk people late at night."
This is hypocritical of Marr. If any of you have worked in a British newsroom, or been involved in journalism, then there are certainly a mixture of angry, single, (seedy?) (drunk?) young men and women all protected by the pass of a major broadcasting corporation, or news publishing company. If this is how Marr sees the people that pay his wages, then the British establishment really has become lost in its own importance and naive, deluded self-worth.
Marr's trade should not be viewed as 'superior' to everything else. Remember, if it wasn't for some of those single, seedy, very very drunk ranters and ravers, the BBC would very likely cease to exist as a public service broadcasting corporation. It's very easy to attack from the comfort of a tent where you are not having to chase the business yourself.
So instead of denigrating the work of amateurs and trained independents, let's commend them, and work together, after all, as George Osbourne once said: "We're in this together."
Oh, and this is being written at 1:30 in the afternoon....

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