If a slot was created for incompetence in the Guinness Book of Records, these incumbents would walk it!

Originally Posted by: John Mason 

The media seem to be accountable to no one, that's the problem. It seems the only time this happens is if someone has challenged them in court over a story, but in the meantime they can destroy that person. How often they report things for days on end which aren't true, but when they should be holding their hands up apologising, they just move on.
While freedom of speech is good on the most part, I feel the media have too freer role. In the updates they hang on every word. Peston was like a vulture when the guy mentioned green shoots. Others alongside knew that wasn't words you should be feeding the gutter press and tried to focus on our current precarious position. Didn't stop them using them words though. Absolute vultures and they cannot be trusted.

Someone should be calling the press out. They should not be exempt from scrutiny. Perhaps it would clean up their act somewhat. Write factual things instead of maybe's and could's.

Originally Posted by: Phil G 

I despair of some of my colleagues. Peston is the worst - he actually said "it's good to have you back, Prime Minister" when Johnson took his first briefing after recovering from CV19.

Originally Posted by: Justin W 

I completely agree, Peter.

For all that the government has handled this crisis really, really badly from the outset, many sections of the media, including some BBC journalists IMO, have hardly helped matters either with their repeated questions recently regarding the easing of the lockdown.

Like everyone, I fully realise that there will come a point when we will have to try to restart the economy in some way. At the moment though, the situation in terms of the battle against the virus is still far too precarious for any of the restrictions to be lifted at this time, in my opinion.

If we have made some more meaningful progress against the virus by the time we reach the end of this month and the early part of June, then maybe things might change. It is too early at the moment though.

Originally Posted by: David M Porter 

On the contrary. The journalists at the briefings are way too supine and let HMG get away with giving the impression it is doing a good job in difficult circumstances.

No difficult questions are asked. All they ever want to know about is when the lockdown is going to end, FFS. And yet more than 50,000 people have died because this government has f4cked this up so badly.

I despair of some of my colleagues. Peston is the worst - he actually said "it's good to have you back, Prime Minister" when Johnson took his first briefing after recovering from CV19.

Originally Posted by: Justin W 

I think that should be the job of the opposition to call out the govt in live q&a's. Truth is how things are in these daily updates, we wouldn't miss the press's contribution, they just want someone to slip up. The govt has slipped into defence mode. All we want to hear are the numbers, what we should or shouldn't be doing, and wait patiently for instructions how to get out of this thing. Just keep it simple. With too much flying around, it only has created more noise on everything with too many voices.

Originally Posted by: Phil G 

There are two main narratives on my Facebook feed at the moment...

One of which is that the Government are doing a terrible job and their failings are responsible for many deaths. 

Another very prominent narrative is that the media are the problem, and are consistently being too critical of the Government, who are actually handling a very difficult situation relatively well.

The relationship between our political system and the media through Brexit and now this crisis is fascinating. 

I honestly think HMG are going to get away with any apparent failings. The left wing media and associated commentary is now the bad guy according to many. 

Originally Posted by: Joe Bloggs 

The press is there to hold power to account. Particularly when those who hold power are incompetent and deceitful. 

You would probably be better off living somewhere fluffy like China where the media is there to parrot the official line and issue instructions to the masses.

Originally Posted by: Justin W 

On the contrary. The journalists at the briefings are way too supine and let HMG get away with giving the impression it is doing a good job in difficult circumstances.

No difficult questions are asked. All they ever want to know about is when the lockdown is going to end, FFS. And yet more than 50,000 people have died because this government has f4cked this up so badly.

I despair of some of my colleagues. Peston is the worst - he actually said "it's good to have you back, Prime Minister" when Johnson took his first briefing after recovering from CV19.

Originally Posted by: Justin W 

50,000? Can't even get the figures right, classic British journalism. 

Most journalists are biast agenda driven..  especially the press and those news stations that rely upon advertisements, and big businesses for money to operate!

Originally Posted by: picturesareme 

Go and look at the ONS figures for excess deaths before you start spouting your usual drivel

Originally Posted by: Justin W 

It is complete paradox.

The government has to be seen to be taking action to contain and mitigate the effects of the virus but by threatening the NHS, closing the borders, destroying the economy and getting rid of the old, the sick, the poor and ethnic minorities, the virus is actually fulfilling policy aims and delivering on manifesto pledges.

Do we actually need the government any more? We could get, "what we voted for", by letting covid-19 run the country.

Originally Posted by: Ulric 

You lay blame of 50,000 deaths on the government- that's drivel

Originally Posted by: picturesareme 

I'm certainly proportioning much of the blame in their direction. Something about being slow to react, relaxed attitude to border control, a criminal lack of protection for NHS workers, increasingly mixed messages to a bewildered public, manipulation of scientific data...

Originally Posted by: SJV 

Also allowing Cheltenham, Stereophonics and the Liverpool match to go ahead. I wonder if their will ever be a study on those events. It’s clear that there was a massive surge in cases soon after.

The government has been next to useless. 

Originally Posted by: Heavy Weather 2013 

Although changing on a daily basis, I understood at that time the advice then was outdoors was okay, inside wasn't until it changed swiftly after. Who said it was okay still at that time?

Originally Posted by: Phil G 

Isn't that simply being polite.
Would you rather he said we wish you had died but I see you're back.

Originally Posted by: four 

Is your world really just binary?

Originally Posted by: Gandalf The White 

Thousands of people packed together, shouting and singing. Who would've thought that could spread an airborne, highly contagious virus?

Originally Posted by: Northern Sky 

There are two main narratives on my Facebook feed at the moment...

Originally Posted by: Joe Bloggs 

You are lucky not to have the eugenic angle in your feed:

"'Mother Nature has to clean the barn every so often,' Burkman counters. 'How real is it? Who knows? So what if 1 percent of the population goes? So what if you lose 400,000 people? 200,000 were elderly, the other 200,000 are the bottom of society. You got to clean out the barn'"

— Matt Welch (@MattWelch) May 7, 2020

Originally Posted by: xioni2 

But what would you say to someone who'd recently been in an ICU?

Originally Posted by: westv 

Slightly similar to those that are always calling for a "reset" - whatever that's supposed to entail.

Originally Posted by: westv