Hackwatch: From the ridiculous to WTF – the Jeremy Corbyn ‘lunge’ silliness
Held back: It LOOKS bad – until you hear that he’s telling a reporter to contact his press office.
These attempts by the right-wing news media to bring down Jeremy Corbyn are just plain silly by now, aren’t they?
The latest smear is on the website of the Torygraph, which could never have been ranked among Mr Corbyn’s biggest fans.
Here’s the gist of it, from that rag’s own write-up.
Jeremy Corbyn came under renewed criticism last night after he was seen being held back by aides as he appeared to lunge at a reporter during a rally in his constituency.
The latest row happened at a community event at a “Say No to Hate Crime” rally organised by the local Labour party at Highbury Fields in his Islington constituency in north London.
Mr Corbyn had to be held back by aides after he lost his temper with a television reporter when asked if he was “running away” from answering questions about his beleaguered leadership.
A video published on the internet shows the reporter asking: “Mr Corbyn when are you going to stand down? How much longer can you stay?” Another asks: “Are you running away from the media?” as he walks away.
A visibly angry Mr Corbyn then appeared to lunge in the journalist’s direction in front of camera crews and photographers, saying: “If you want to arrange an interview speak to my press office. Thank you.”
An aide then restrains the Labour leader, saying to him: “Jeremy, please don’t, please don’t.”
He lunged at the reporter (Victoria MacDonald of Channel 4 News) and says: “If you want to arrange an interview, speak to my press office”? “Thank you“?
You’d have to have a tin ear to believe that rubbish.
If somebody lunges at you, I would suggest they have one of two things on their mind that they might utter as they were doing it:
“Get away from me!”
or
“I’m going to kill* you!”
One thing they don’t do is ask you to arrange an interview with their press office.
Ms MacDonald herself has said the moment has been overexaggerated: “He was angry yes but contrary to reports I didn’t feel ‘lunged at’.”
What are we to make of this?
Perhaps this is proof that the hacks at the Torygraph still think a lie can go around the world while the truth is still getting its shoes on. If so, then those hacks have an important lesson to learn.
This is the 21st century. With social media, a lie can hardly go any distance at all before the truth shoots it dead.
*Alternatively maim, hurt, cripple – you get the idea
ADVERT
Join the Vox Political Facebook page.
If you have appreciated this article, don’t forget to share it using the buttons at the bottom of this page. Politics is about everybody – so let’s try to get everybody involved!
Vox Political needs your help!
If you want to support this site
(but don’t want to give your money to advertisers)
you can make a one-off donation here:
Buy Vox Political books so we can continue
fighting for the facts.
Health Warning: Government! is now available
in either print or eBook format here:
The first collection, Strong Words and Hard Times,
is still available in either print or eBook format here:
They will clearly stop at nothing. They are frightened of him and his popularity.
I don’t think Corbyn is a man given to lunging. He is the most hopeless and hapless leader that has graced the political stage in the modern era, but lunging isn’t his style.
If he’s so hopeless, why has he got the support of everyone who counts?
spot on m
It’s going to take every single Labour Party Association to publically back him and get it publicised nationally to stop this nonsense.
Haha, yeah, I believe I’ve seen the complete video about this…. and he didn’t lunge at all. So, most of what was written was total rubbish.
All he did was turn his body round a bit, and say about arranging an interview, and then kept walking. Bearing in mind the reporters questioning and style, I thought he did well actually.
http://www.itv.com/news/2016-07-02/trade-union-survey-indicates-unease-over-jeremy-corbyn-as-labour-leader/
The article also mentions a poll of Unite members supposedly indicating that most think Corbyn should step down. What the article doesn’t mention is that, at 775 members, the sample was far too small to be safely representative (2,000 considered the barest minimum), or that the proportion thinking he should stand down is less than half.
And of course the union’s leaders signed up to the below statement; –
http://www.unitetheunion.org/news/joint-trade-union-statement-on-the-labour-party/
In my memory i cannot recall such a concerted and co-ordinated attack on an individual leader of the party, and i can remember many from our rotten news media, assisted and abetted by Labour or should i say New Labour MP’s in my time! Jeremy must be feeling it now, mentally and physically and i wonder if this is the aim now to simply wear him down into a feeling of hopelessness. This isn’t democracy and the PLP have made me confident that these people have no tight to represent the decent people who are still stunned and worried about the future, out of the EU, and after 6 harsh years of ideological attacks ! Anne Coffey has even been quoted tonight as saying ‘ She isn;t here to represent the members;! If this isnt an indication of total dislocation from the members by people who used to come from within the bodies of Trade Unions and from working class heartlands when the party stood for socialism and people, before the treachery of Blair and New Labour. Our media are not fit for purpose, Leveson might as well have not taken place, because the antics of most rags and hacks is driven by one agenda at a time when Cameron has created such chaos and disharmony to pander to his right wing and UKIP! Even the disreputable antics of Johnson, Gove and Farage seem invisible when the media have Jeremy Corbyn as their target!
Miss McDonalds twitter page says different
Where? All I’m seeing is: “My exchange with @jeremycorbyn in full at 515pm on @Channel4News. He was angry yes but contrary to reports I didn’t feel ‘lunged at'” – which supports my article.
When Corbyn is in reality the most inspiring leader of this generation, giving hope where it has been lost. Blair only won through giving false hope of a change, and then steadily shafted the members and the wider public.
Now people who have felt abandoned have at last been given real new hope and inspiration. Name any other MP who could bring thousands out into the streets in support within hours (and many, many more of us there in spirit).
How many MPs (or anyone) would have the courage to face the constant villification that has been thrown at Corbyn since being elected? What a brave, truly courageous man, going through all of this to represent and defend the weaker part of our society.
He’s not perfect. Nobody is perfect. But even were JC walking on water, they would still be crucifying him (politically speaking).
As he would say – let’s talk about the policies.
But most of the press and broadcasting media can only invent disparagements and plant provocateurs, as they don’t want people discussing those policies.
As much as a revolt against an unnecessary neoliberal austerity designed only for serving the one percent, does this country need to reject its formal news media.
Arguing with idiots is like playing chess with a pigeon… No matter how good you are, the bird is going to shit on the board and strut around like it won anyway. – Unknown