Tag Archives: UK general election

John Prescott takes on the Sun: ‘I’ve always hated the Sun and Murdoch’

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John Prescott pulls no punches in his reaction to recent set-tos between the Sun, News International executives and the press pack. He writes:

I’ve always hated the Sun and Murdoch. I was never happy with their endorsement of Blair (NEVER Labour, always Blair.)

But last week they blatantly LIED about my campaign. And today I’ll expose it.

Before this came a quote now bordering on infamy – the Sun’s political editor Tom Newton Dunn is reported to have recently told other journalists: “It is my job to see that Cameron fucking well gets into Downing Street.” This was followed by Rebekah Brooks and James Murdoch’s unexpected “visit” to the Independent’s offices – Murdoch decided “to stamp his little feet and go nasty”, writes Prescott.

But a story headlined ‘No Prez-ence’, which suggested no one turned up to hear Prescott speak at a visit to Southampton, appears to be the straw that’s broken the camel’s back. Prescott says he is now going to expand his campaigning for Labour to ensure it’s the Sun and Murdoch’s Son “wot lost it” on 7 May, he says.

Full post at this link…

Snowblog: Jon Snow’s review of the televised leaders’ debate

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Channel 4 News presenter Jon Snow reviews last night’s televised debate between the leaders of the UK’s three main political parties:

The American tuition was evident. Clegg’s engagement with the camera was by far the best – I do not know whose input that might have been – possibly his own. But it was a wise use of the medium.

The most notable American influence in the debate was the wheeling out of individual and anecdotal stories. They didn’t work- they were thin and largely inconclusive, sometimes begging the question as to whether they were true. They don’t seem to work in a UK context.

Elsewhere, Shane Richmond blogs a round-up of some of the best one-liners making up the conversation around the debates on Twitter.

Last night’s broadcaster ITV and plenty of other news sites were busy liveblogging the debates and providing instant polling of viewers, but what were the best ways to follow online (and what tools didn’t work out)? Let us know in the comments below.