ATW Weekend Quote
Every time I see the TV Licensing adverts or the Car Tax adverts, I am struck by their educational value. States are self-perpetuating institutions through which the means of collective coercion are applied, nothing more or less, and having the state be completely upfront about its true nature is very useful indeed.
- Perry de Havilland at samizdata, referring to this television advert on behalf of the British state.
My own favourite is this recently broadcast effort, which I can't help thinking is aimed at me. Each time I view it, with its threatening tag, the sound of children in the background, accompanying helicopter track and overall air of omnipresent state surveillance, I can't help thinking of the line that Orwell's 1984 was meant as a warning and not a manual.
Note to Americans and others elsewhere - that isn't a spoof advert, our government now actually does communicate with Britons this way.
Pete Moore
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Reader Comments (7)
My, that's really hard stuff, true enough. And they wonder why people are scared of ID cards.
>>our government now actually does communicate with Britons this way.<<
Who does the cash go to, the government or a licensing authority?
And besides, it's not as if the BBC is in any way a tool of the UK govt., or even supports its policies. They were in fact tearing each other to shreds over the Iraq war, and have had many other very vicious and very public disputes on policy.
Don't you believe it oh hairy one!
When a govt wants you oven ready, it starts on your domestic sense of fear & apprehension; foreign policy is of no consequence. In fact it can make you feel quite patriotic....the very last thing the bastards want from you.
Noel,
" They were in fact tearing each other to shreds over the Iraq war, and have had many other very vicious and very public disputes on policy."
A bit of a myth. The BBC was probably the most pro-war news organisation this side of the pond, and carried more pro-government stories than Sky etc.
No matter what the rights and wrongs of the BBC TV Licence, the point remains that it is utterly offensive and fascist for the authorities to be communicating with us in such an upfront, threatening way.
Oi, State, don't look at me with that tone of voice. Remember, You exist to serve me, not vice-versa.
Talk about mission creep! What hubris that bloated bureaucracy of the BBC has!
I would think in this day and age, with the proliferation of media product, on cable tv, satellite tv, internet -- that the BBC would be retired as a relic of the past.
Wouldn't you?
A bit of a myth. The BBC was probably the most pro-war news organisation this side of the pond, and carried more pro-government stories than Sky etc.
Sunday, May 18, 2008 at 08:37PM | Frank O'Dwyer
Hate to say it Frank, but I disagree and I believe that you're wrong. The Iraq war happened quite recently and most of us can remeber it clearly, and that includes the BBC's reporting that the coalition forces were facing stiff resistance even when their own embedded reporter was reporting that coalition forces were advancing rapidly and with few casualties.
You should follow the golden rule of all revisionists and wait a decent time until most of those who actually do have memories of the events which you are revising are dead.
Allan, Allan,
"You should follow the golden rule of all revisionists and wait a decent time until most of those who actually do have memories of the events which you are revising are dead."
That is pretty ironic coming as it does from you who cannot even copy and paste comments from yesterday accurately. I am referring of course to a proper study of the actual output - naturally not as impressive as anecdotal recollections from yourself, who usually cannot even read for comprehension:
Over the three weeks of conflict, 11% of the sources quoted by the BBC were of coalition government or military origin, the highest proportion of all the main television broadcasters. The BBC was the least likely to quote official Iraqi sources, and less likely than Sky, ITV or Channel 4 News to use independent (and often sceptical) sources such as the Red Cross.
The study found the BBC placed least emphasis on Iraqi casualties, which were mentioned in 22% of its stories about the Iraqi people. Casualties received most prominence on Channel 4 News, figuring in 40% of its reports about Iraqis. The corporation was least likely to report on the unhappiness of Iraqis about the invasion.
The research, funded by Cardiff University, covers the BBC1 news at 6pm, the ITV Evening News at 6.30pm, Channel 4 News at 7pm and Sky News at 9pm. Channel 4 News was the most questioning of the coalition line, while ITV News used the lowest proportion of coalition sources.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2003/jul/04/Iraqandthemedia.politicsandthemedia