Media fury as government, erm, does what it demanded
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Well there ain’t no pleasing some. Some of us predicted, back when the hysteria about the government’s insulation program was in full swing, that when it caved in and cancelled the program the media would, having agitated for an immediate end to the ‘debacle’, instantly turn around and begin lamenting the impact of the closure of businesses. That duly followed, with footage of sheds full of batts and unhappy employees who, of course, wouldn’t have had a job in the first place but for the much-criticised program. Presumably none of the featured businesses were the shonks and spivs the media said had been lured into the industry by Garrett. It’s déjà vu all over again today with the two most aggressive opponents of the RSPT, The Australian and the Financial Review, suddenly mortified at the massive loss to taxpayers of the deal struck between the government and the miners. You’ll recall both papers happily ran the miners’ agenda against the tax, although the Fin, which retains some sort of intellectual rigour, did provide the occasional rather unforgiving insight into the lies being pedalled by the foreign multi-nationals campaigning against the tax. Now, however, Goldman Sachs research, calculating the cost of the compromise at $35 billion over a decade has given the media the opportunity to get stuck into the government for doing what it was demanding it do. The government had, the Fin reported, “taken another blow to its budget forecasts yesterday when analysts identified a $35 billion revenue gap from the major concessions offered to miners last week…” (yes, evidently Treasury has changed its policy and is now doing Budget forecasts out to 2020). At The Oz: “The government gave away $35 billion in potential tax receipts over the next decade for a deal with the big miners, research has revealed.” The Fin doubled up by running pieces suggesting the brown coal industry and small miners were unhappy that the compromise tax would cost too much. Which is it, chaps? Too much or too little? Politicians should bear all this in mind when they do the political maths of caving in to pressure and change policies. You’ll never get any credit for doing what the media’s demanding, because journalists will just turn around and get stuck into you for back-flipping. |
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20 Comments
Surely it’s a matter of degree, though, especially when those “serving” are politicians of “Murdoch’s Coal-ition and PR Media Machine Inc”?
Disagree here a bit BK.
You seem to be arguing that newspapers should have a co-ordinated message, which implies that all writers should toe the company line.
While I agree that the newspaper as a whole is being disengenuous on this (and most every other issue), I disagree that the solution to this is a united voice.
I for one would rather journalists report the facts and angles as they see them and we all get over the idea that The Oz, the SMH, or even Crikey for that matter, has a narrative at all. Surely truth is the narrative to strive for?
Surely truth is the narrative to strive for?
Not when you work for Rupert.
The theme of this article is similar to my thoughts when I noticed the SMH headline. You don’t need to work for Rupert to rubbish the common wealth at every opportunity. He just leads the way on behalf of all plutocrats. The situation is execrable.
The career of Rupert Murdoch has been-with one exception-has been as a destroyer of people and institutions. At which he has been spectacularly successful.
Perhaps only an Australian could have achieved the top by taking the negative perspective?
peddle [ˈpɛdəl]
vb
1. (Business / Commerce) to go from place to place selling (goods, esp small articles)
2. (Law / Recreational Drugs) (tr) to sell (illegal drugs, esp narcotics)
3. (tr) to advocate (ideas) persistently or importunately to peddle a new philosophy
4. (intr) Archaic to trifle
pedal1
n
(Engineering / Automotive Engineering)
a. any foot-operated lever or other device, esp one of the two levers that drive the chain wheel of a bicycle, the foot brake, clutch control, or accelerator of a car, one of the levers on an organ controlling deep bass notes, or one of the levers on a piano used to create a muted effect or sustain tone
b. (as modifier) a pedal cycle a pianist’s pedal technique
vb -als, -alling, -alled US, -als -aling, -aled
1. to propel (a bicycle, boat, etc.) by operating the pedals
2. (intr) to operate the pedals of an organ, piano, etc., esp in a certain way
3. to work (pedals of any kind)
Probably you wanted peddled.
MESKI: Perhaps he wanted to pedal his own piano?
I don’t know, it’s not a bad metaphor really - there is the image evoked of someone out of their depth on “Reality Lake” on one of those pedal boats going for their quoit, to get from “out there” to here, on the pier, storm bearing down, lest they end up “contaminated” by those waters.
Dr Harvey M Tarvydas
Good on you BK. You’re a lone voice with this article, nobody could argue with that.
Nor could anyone argue that you are trying to make your profession accountable to some moral code related to ‘truth’. As a very young man I was inspired by extraordinary people that would pop up from time to time, here and there feeling that it had been left to them to do the same thing in many different professions. On occasions some effectiveness occurred at the time but most often vindication was decades away and on some occasions it would be spectacular. I have been there too but enough of that. The protagonists of this sort of nonsense that we both have learnt to abhor here in Aus are so good at doing it as you say (turning themselves inside as if the fist of reality has ploughed through their open mouth, not stopping till it grabs the little pink ring firmly by it’s inside edge and pulling, ripping it back through that mouthhole, such is their inside-out, a necessary mental state to see normality as a cascade of ‘back-flips’. I don’t think they will ever improve their view of life but will keep trying to corrupt ours.
Dr Harvey M Tarvydas
Oh shit a most important mistake - the word ‘out’ left out.
Good on you BK. You’re a lone voice with this article, nobody could argue with that.
Nor could anyone argue that you are trying to make your profession accountable to some moral code related to ‘truth’. As a very young man I was inspired by extraordinary people that would pop up from time to time, here and there feeling that it had been left to them to do the same thing in many different professions. On occasions some effectiveness occurred at the time but most often vindication was decades away and on some occasions it would be spectacular. I have been there too but enough of that. The protagonists of this sort of nonsense that we both have learnt to abhor here in Aus are so good at doing it as you say (turning themselves inside OUT as if the fist of reality has ploughed through their open mouth, not stopping till it grabs the little pink ring firmly by it’s inside edge and pulling, ripping it back through that mouthhole, such is their inside-out, a necessary mental state to see normality as a cascade of ‘back-flips’. I don’t think they will ever improve their view of life but will keep trying to corrupt ours.
I paid my subs again recently. BK, you are part of the reason.
And FDOTM.
And a few others, one currently visiting South Africa, except when he tries to be a poet.
JOHN BENNETTS: Ho ho! You are a Dogonaut? I think, hope, he’ll be back on Monday.
‘Night
‘You’ll never get any credit for doing what the media’s demanding, because journalists will just turn around and get stuck into you for back-flipping.’
Good point, and a reason for politicians to think twice or three times before basing their policies-on-the-run decisions on what the shock jocks will be saying tomorrow morning.
@ Vernise Alstergren:
Sure that he doesn’t have another week off? He has earned it! My dog passed away recently, so I have transferred all my emotional credits to FDOTM. This mutt is simply the greatest.
@John Bennetts: I’m so sorry to hear about your dog. I’ve always been of the opinion that animals choose us, so watch out for liquid brown eyes and a wagging tail.
At Chez Dogonaut the feeling is FD will be back tomorrow.
Indeed “this mutt is the greatest”
PS: It’s Venise-no ‘r’
Watch out for those liquid eyes and a wagging tail.
Cheers
Venise
Venise, dogs and farms, even little hobby farms, have a complex existence. He was part bull terrier, part blue heeler, tough as nails, difficult to train at first, but as tough as nails and a great mate.
With stock he was (as expected) an absolute failure, but as a conpanion and outside-the-house-dog, he was brilliant. I have little time for namby-pamby dogs. They need attitude, which this fellow had in spades, even when he went walking with a broken chain on his collar. Roads and dogs just don’t mix.
We have decided to take a year or two break before replacing him, probably with another border collie, so that we can get some stock work done.
Goodness knows what habits our other dog, the celestial one, will bring back from Bali or wherever.
JOHN: It’s awful how animals can penetrate our hearts. Yet I think we would be less than human if we didn’t allow our hearts to be invaded by them.
You mention roads. I hope that wasn’t what killed him? I couldn’t sleep if I knew a dog wasn’t allowed inside. But I’m terribly soft with animals.
One thing that worries me; FDOTM said he was going to Bali to commune with elephants. I didn’t know elephants were indigenous to Bali???
Are they?
Cheers
Venise
Venise,
Yes it was a road accident, right at our front gate. Mercifully, quick.
The dog’s life outside is probably more interesting than inside - birds, lizards, wind and so on are all interesting to a dog. Bones to bury. Other dogs to bark at in the distance. One of his skills was to wail up and down with the siren of the fire truck as it drove down our road from the fire station. I always got at least 2 minutes advance warning - about 3km.
He only ever wanted to come inside during hail storms, and then only to turn around and go back outside 10 seconds later.
Regarding elephants and Bali, you will need to find an expert. I suspect that they were able to get there many decades ago, because Bali is on the top of the line which separates Australian fauna (marsupials, etc) from Asian monkeys, etc, but that’s drawing a long bow.
But they aren’t native to there, according to the top google hit. Someone could perhaps make a trunk call there to confirm that.
John,
I meant inside at night only. My late husband had a farm, and it was wonderful to see the dogs going mental with joy up there.
Being very small dogs you couldn’t actually see them rushing up to the bull and generally going ape. You could make out their progress by watching the movement of the high grasses.
MESKI: Meskeee
You should be locked up for that little effort.