Corbyn explains how media helped campaign – and tried to harm his family

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It seems Jeremy Corbyn decided to run for the Labour leadership only after LBC Radio’s Iain Dale suggested it, Vox Political can reveal in the second part of its media roundup of Mr Corbyn’s victory.

The station’s website proclaimed: “Iain suggested he should run, saying: ‘In all seriousness, someone from your side of the party – John McDonnell has done this before.

“‘Someone who is not seen as New Labour or anything like it. I think it would actually enhance the debate.

“‘I don’t know who it would be apart from yourself – we’ll put the thought in your mind, and take full credit if you do decide to run.’

“And speaking a month later, Mr Corbyn gave Iain full credit for putting the idea in his mind.”

But The Independent chose to highlight the abuse thrown at Mr Corbyn, his family and friends, by the media. He alluded to this in his acceptance speech, and the newspaper stated: “He has been accused of being an anti-Semite, a racist and was also accused of failing to act on child abuse allegations in his Islington constituency.

“Those are just some of the allegations that have been levelled against him in the media and even by some of his fellow Labour MPs, who have attempted to persuade people against voting for the far-left MP in a bitter, three-month leadership contest.”

Speaking the day before his historic victory, Mr Corbyn was reported to have said: “As nasty and unpleasant [as] much of the stuff printed is and remains and is deeply hurtful to my wife, family and close friends, we’re not responding in any way; we don’t do that kind of politics.”

In The Guardian, Labour MP John Woodcock said the time had now come for supporters of Labour’s various factions to stop infighting and get behind the new leader.

“If we are to move on from here, then we must recognise how damaging it has been for Labour people, who have all basically wanted the same thing, to have knocked lumps out of each other for 20 years,” he wrote.

Ironically, at the time of writing, those words appear right next to a box declaring: “Labour Deputy Leader Tom Watson suggests he’ll oppose Jeremy Corbyn over scrapping Trident.”

It seems some of us haven’t got the message yet…

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10 Comments

  1. paulrutherford8 September 13, 2015 at 12:51 pm - Reply

    Talking about LBC… as you were out shopping with Mrs Mike yesterday, you may have missed this. It’s Pritti Patel spouting… well, have a quick listen and you’ll be chuckling by the end ;)

    https://audioboom.com/boos/3566718-tory-minister-priti-patel-gives-a-lesson-on-how-not-to-react-to-a-corbyn-victory?utm_campaign=embed&utm_content=retweet&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter

  2. hugosmum70 September 13, 2015 at 12:54 pm - Reply

    congratulations to Jeremy. a new era begins, one with hope for the future at last,
    just hope i am still here to witness the result of that and the 2020 election (and have all my faculties so i can understand it all too).

  3. Peter Powell September 13, 2015 at 2:18 pm - Reply

    I see that some (former) members of Labours Front Bench have spat out their dummies already and are refusing to serve under the new democratically elected leader. They ought to be shown the back door and have their membership suspended. They have already outstayed their welcome imho.

    • David Woods September 13, 2015 at 5:31 pm - Reply

      No, they should be shown the Front door and sacked with labour candidates in their constituencies being nominated for election!

      If they can openly state they will not respect the result of an honest and open election by their own party members – They should not remain in politics at the very least in the Party they would deny a free vote too and I can’t see any other Party wanting them having that on their CV.
      So give them to IDS – Sack them, make them unemployed!

  4. stephen brophy September 13, 2015 at 6:32 pm - Reply

    Great news for labour, the tories are worried now! I’m well pleased.

  5. mohandeer September 13, 2015 at 7:29 pm - Reply

    Unbelievable that Tom Watson who I unfortunately voted for should come out to state he is in favour of Trident. He is fully aware that JC got the following he has because he advocated no to Trident among other neoliberal tossers thinking and now he would like to remind us why Labour lost in 2010 and 2015. Because they would just as soon tell the membership, you will follow our lead or f*** off. They were not listening then, they’re not listening still. Mr. Watson will be getting a strongly worded message from me (without the bad language) he got in on JC’s coattails and now he’s decided to announce he doesn’t care what we the majority want? How stupid are the Labour Party?

    • Mike Sivier September 13, 2015 at 9:10 pm - Reply

      The Labour Party as a whole is now extremely intelligent, I would say.
      It’s just certain high-profile members who need to step into the fresh air and realise which way the wind’s blowing.

  6. mohandeer September 13, 2015 at 7:57 pm - Reply

    The three reasons I abandoned the Green Party: JC was anti war/nuclear, anti austerity and he had a strong economic policy to back up his wish list. Yvette Cooper who is an economist has already shown that she is not a very good one and will no doubt scupper JC’s Keynesian macroeconomic strategy, Tom Watson will scupper anti Trident voting and the LP will lose in 2020, because they will not be trusted with the economy, again.

    • Mike Sivier September 13, 2015 at 9:12 pm - Reply

      I think you’re mistaken. Cooper isn’t part of JC’s team and will have limited influence from the sidelines. Watson will not persuade JC against Trident. The media are likely to try to claim Labour cannot be trusted with the economy but if you think JC has a strong economic policy, then you can do your bit by denying those claims to anybody who repeats them.

  7. mrmarcpc September 17, 2015 at 3:55 pm - Reply

    The right wing press tried everything in their power to convince people not to vote for him and to hurt him personally but they failed, now they’re all left with egg on their smug, posh faces! Blairite/tory Labour members will still try to scupper him, hope he fills the party with true Labour members so he can push them right out the back door and to the right where they belong but why he kept Burnham in the party I’ll never know, he’s no true Labour member!

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