BBC Question Time’s ‘right-wing’ panel sparks anger from viewers and Labour MPs

Last Updated: January 15, 2016By

Isn’t it strange? When there are complaints about drama or comedy programmes, or individual TV or radio presenters, the BBC can tell you how many it received, immediately.

When the issue is the policies of the BBC News department, that well of information suddenly dries up.

It seems the BBC could not immediately identify the total volume of complaints against Question Time over its overwhelmingly right-wing panel in last night’s (January 14) show.

One person who was clearly unhappy is Jeremy Corbyn, who live-tweeted during the debate in support of his MP, Cat Smith. This Blog welcomes his bid to bring balance to an otherwise hugely biased political programme.

A poll in the Daily Mirror asking whether the panel was biased showed 80 per cent of readers believed it was, against 20 per cent who didn’t.

This Writer was moved to tweet regarding David Dimbleby’s chairmanship of the programme. I said it’s time he retired and, for balance, the next chairman should have strong left-wing views.

The BBC’s Question Time has sparked bias claims after featuring just one declared left-winger on its panel.

Journalists and Labour MPs joined criticism of the flagship political debate show on Twitter during its first screening of the new year.

The five-strong panel pitched Corbyn-supporting Labour MP Cat Smith against Tory minister Nick Boles and Ukip MEP Patrick O’Flynn.

And the two journalists were both current or former employees of newspapers owned by Rupert Murdoch – Sunday Times columnist Camilla Long and former Sun editor Kelvin MacKenzie.

The alleged lack of balance prompted fury from viewers and Labour MPs.

The bias didn’t end with Question Time. That show was immediately followed by Andrew Neil’s right-wing propaganda piece This Week, in which some lunatic (who cares who it was) tried to claim David Cameron got the better of Jeremy Corbyn in the PMQs exchange on housing. As if!

Source: BBC Question Time’s ‘right-wing’ panel sparks anger from viewers and Labour MPs – Mirror Online

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No Comments

  1. NMac January 15, 2016 at 11:45 am - Reply

    The Dimblebys, right back to father Richard, have always been reactionary Tory stooges.

    • daijohn January 16, 2016 at 6:18 pm - Reply

      Yes I think the Dimbleby brothers should be put out to grass- along with Nicholas Parson – and bring back Sandi Toksvig to the News Quzz.

  2. Rupert Mitchell (@rupert_rrl) January 15, 2016 at 11:47 am - Reply

    In a democratic country the main broadcaster should surely be the IBC (independent Broadcasting Company) and not one which has vested interests in any particular party.

    • Mike Sivier January 15, 2016 at 12:42 pm - Reply

      The BBC does not have vested interests in any particular party. Independent broadcasters have private owners and there’s no reason to believe those people don’t have vested interests in any particular party.
      For example, look at Sky, Rupert Murdoch and the Conservatives.

      • Archie Lochus January 18, 2016 at 8:33 am - Reply

        The BBC _does_ have vested interests in government, in the Establishment and in the retention of the current status quo though.

        • Mike Sivier January 18, 2016 at 12:17 pm - Reply

          It has a vested interest in maintaining its revenue stream, yes. But that doesn’t reside in any particular political party, and the current policy of sucking up to the Tories, even though they are doing their best to cripple the BBC, is lunacy.

      • Archie Lochus January 18, 2016 at 5:30 pm - Reply

        Oh Mike! Despite your boast of having been a news reporter for 20 years it doesn’t seem to have sunk in with you yet that there is only _one_ “party” and it’s called “THE GOVERNMENT (of the day.)”

        • Mike Sivier January 18, 2016 at 6:38 pm - Reply

          No. There’s a reason for that, but my own rule about harsh language prohibits me from saying what it is!

  3. che January 15, 2016 at 11:56 am - Reply

    I started to watch it and switched over soon afterwards. It was like watching a conservative party political broadcast. Camilla Long stumbled over every answer and Kelvin Mackensie should be shot. He makes IDS look like a complacent moderate.

    • Mike Sivier January 15, 2016 at 12:38 pm - Reply

      Again, This Blog does not condone violence.

      • Archie Lochus January 18, 2016 at 8:35 am - Reply

        What che said was a figure of speech, you know, as in, Come the revolution…

        • Mike Sivier January 18, 2016 at 12:15 pm - Reply

          It’s a figure of speech that indicates a willingness to resort to violence. I have to make it clear that This Blog won’t support that kind of thing.

      • Archie Lochus January 18, 2016 at 5:44 pm - Reply

        It does not necessarily indicate “a willingness to resort to violence” at all! I repeat, it is a jocular figure of speech, a _classic_ political trope. Thus: “Come the revolution and we’ll line ’em against a wall and shoot ’em!” Moreover, the seriocomic language of your average Citizen Smith really does pale into laughable insignificance when compared with the real and actual violence that is committed more or less continuously by government and its stooges.

        • Mike Sivier January 18, 2016 at 7:25 pm - Reply

          Nevertheless, I have a duty to restate This Blog’s position – not to support violence – whenever anyone makes even an idiomatic suggestion of the same. That way, everyone knows where they are. Remember – not everybody is as open-minded or well-read as you.

        • che January 18, 2016 at 10:25 pm - Reply

          Thanks for your support Archie, yes it is a figure of speech. You mean you dont have asperations on IDS for example Mike ? What I would like to do to him is unprintable.

          • Mike Sivier January 19, 2016 at 2:18 pm

            If I did, I would not publicise them here.
            The position of This Blog is clear; it has been the same for a very long time. That’s all there is to it.

      • Archie Lochus January 19, 2016 at 12:43 pm - Reply

        Mike, How times change!

        May I refer you to an episode of Alf Garnett, Till Death Us Do Part, (series 4 episode 4,) “If we want a democracy we’ve got to start shooting a few people.”

        https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uDvfQpVBh7M

        And yet now in our obsessionally politically correct disordered world we see Jeremy Clarkson sacked by the BBC because he said, “I’d have strikers shot.”

        http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/bbc/8927036/Jeremy-Clarkson-execute-public-sector-workers-says-BBC-Top-Gear-host.html

        • Mike Sivier January 19, 2016 at 1:44 pm - Reply

          There is a huge difference in context between a – fictional – situation comedy show and the comments of a right-wing TV presenter who probably meant what he was saying – as there is between a sitcom and a forum on which current affairs are discussed.
          I’ve made my point clearly enough and won’t waste any more time with it. This Blog will enter into any more correspondence about the matter at this time.

  4. stephen brophy January 15, 2016 at 12:36 pm - Reply

    This is from the so called leftwing beeb! When the head of bbc news used to work for Rupert murdoch leftwing my @ss.

  5. mohandeer January 15, 2016 at 12:54 pm - Reply

    Stopped watching the BBC a long time ago precisely because of it’s pro government right wing bias. No more Andrew Neil or BBCQT or Sunday politics or propagandist news. Big savings on remote controls.

  6. Brian January 15, 2016 at 1:07 pm - Reply

    But this is good! the viewers are at least identifying the dross that is spewed out by these so called democrats, does that not at least indicate the public’s awareness of their diatribe.?

  7. shazzyrm January 15, 2016 at 1:08 pm - Reply

    I can’t stand the BBC and I can’t stand how we are forced to pay the license fee, I would rather it taken off air than be forced to pay for something I can’t stand to watch because of the right wing nonsence that is always on their political programs. I stopped watching Question time a while back because I got so frustrated with how one sided it was. As for the show afterwards, ‘This Week’ is such a waste of time, money and effort with the interviewee that’s a bit of a joker but isn’t even funny at all.

    • Terry Davies January 15, 2016 at 5:10 pm - Reply

      i did same.

  8. ian725 January 15, 2016 at 2:06 pm - Reply

    N Mac .- Hmmmm that is strange ! I thought most of the Dimblebys were active in the Liberal Party in the old days!

    • Mike Sivier January 15, 2016 at 2:14 pm - Reply

      Maybe, but David is an old Bullingdon boy!

  9. mrmarcpc January 15, 2016 at 4:07 pm - Reply

    What else would you expect from the tory loving, pervert protecting BBC, even though the tories are currently shafting them, they’ll still tow the party line, proving just how pathetic, archaic, useless and pointless this corporation is, what good are they to us the people if they can’t be impartial, it’s no wonder the public are sick of the Beeb now, they’ve brought about their own misery on themselves!

  10. shaun January 15, 2016 at 6:45 pm - Reply

    It’s not just BBC’s news output that has gone right-wing, but their documentary output has been woeful for several years. In the submission to Tory enquiry into how the BBC can become like Sky Media (:-) I wrote that its non-news programming is often second to none and the range surpasses all, but its news has lost all credibility due to its right-wing bias.
    shaunt

  11. John January 15, 2016 at 7:35 pm - Reply

    I only saw part of the programme, but what got me was the seemingly shocking lack of accurate information being given about the junior doctors, especially by the female Journalist (Camila?). There were one or two people who didn’t seem to know why the doctors were striking. And TWO Rupert Murdock journalists! Defo very right wing!

  12. A Grumpy_Old_Man (@Hairyloon) January 15, 2016 at 11:13 pm - Reply

    I am not so bothered by the Right Wing tilt of the panel as I am at the number of Murdoch’s minions: does he not already have enough platforms to pedal his poison?
    The BBC should be a No Sky Zone.

  13. Phil Lee January 16, 2016 at 1:49 am - Reply

    The BBC has become a Party Political Borecast on behalf of the Tory party, at least in terms of it’s news and current affairs departments. I resent being made to fund it when it clearly ISN’T unbiased.

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