My first article published here at Pearls and Irritations, titled Built on a tower of lies, described how positive feedback loops have created at a societal level an enormous tower of lies that guide public discourse. I further warned that if we failed to dismantle this tower the consequences would be traumatic. Unfortunately, the horrifically Continue reading »
Media
Boris Johnson's new job at the Daily Mail is the perfect example of how failure is rewarded in British political and media life.
With a mendacious former Prime Minister now returning to work for the press which enabled his rise, the moral bankruptcy of the media-political class is complete
Since I was elected, I have consistently called for media reform. This is due to my concerns that the absence of media diversity and the resulting concentration of power are leading to a lack of accountability and eroding public trust in the fourth estate. The publication of leaked text messages in relation to the high-profile Continue reading »
Niche news network Sky News Australia has applauded the Peter Dutton led Opposition for using leaked evidence from a criminal trial to target an alleged victim of sexual assault and those that may have helped them. ”Brilliant move, Mr Dutton,... Read More ›
The other day I stumbled across a 2014 opinion piece in The Guardian titled “It’s not Russia that’s pushed Ukraine to the brink of war” by Seumas Milne, who the following year would go on to become the Labour Party’s Executive Director of Strategy and Communications under Jeremy Corbyn. I bring this up because the Continue reading »
A battle of ideas is being fought in Australia. And the front line is the drive to war and the demonisation of China. There is a battle but it is a one-sided affair. Ranged against those who seek a sane and rational world are powerful voices. The government, of whatever persuasion pays think tanks handsomely Continue reading »
The very limited authority of the UK press industry’s tame watchdog is under assault from its members, vividly exposing the contradictions in its make-up, writes Brian Cathcart
Even without Chat-bot assistance, it is fun to look up quotations and their origins online and then discover, for example, this quote reportedly from Winston Churchill: “The only statistics you can trust are the ones you have falsified yourself.” And an earlier British prime minister from the 19th century, Benjamin Disraeli, allegedly said there were Continue reading »