Julia Hobsbawm: is the daughter of the Russian Jewish Marxist historian Professor Eric Hobsbawm. http://www.juliahobsbawm.com/
Eric Hobsbawm enjoyed a close friendship with fellow Marxist Ralph Miliband, father of Ed and David Miliband but they never agreed over the Hobcbawn’s refusal to condemn Stalinism’s 30 million dead, or the brutal Soviet invasion of Hungary in 1956, on the grounds that the socialist end always justified the means. Relations between them deteriorated when Hobsbawn suggested in an article in Marxism Today in 1983 that the Left might prefer ‘a Thatcher government to a reformist Labour government’ in which they had lost faith. Hobsbawn was invited to the Milibands’ for New Year’s Eve and the two ended up having a terrific row, but they later made it up. Like all Left-wing thinkers, Ralph Miliband knew how to explain away awkward events.
She became involved with the Labour Party at the suggestion of Ken Follet who introduced her to the late Mo Mowlam and her late husband John Norton. Between them they founded and ran the Tony Blair networking fund raiser, called The Thousand Club. In 1991, Julia persuaded the De Beers diamond mining and marketing conglomerate to become a major donor to the Labour Party.
From 1993 to 2001, she was in partnership with Sarah Macaulay in the PR firm Hobsbawm Macaulay Communications. Ever the matchmaker Julia was an influence encouraging the romance of Gordon Brown and Sarah who were clearly compatible. Sarah married Brown in August 2000 and left the partnership in May 2001. http://www.thejc.com/lifestyle/lifestyle-features/63300/interview-julia-hobsbawm
More about the Tony Blair inspired fund raiser 1000 Club. McCaulay & Hobsbawm’s party-plan networking organisation for those with an annual £1,000 or so to give to Tony, which had existed since the early 1990s. It was described as a way to, “make middle-class participants feel like big shots” and we now know the sum falls far from that of a peerage. “The covering letter accompanying the club’s promotional literature in March 1996 – laden with such Blair clichés as, “young country” and, “new economy” — promised invitations to special summer and Christmas receptions, an annual conference dinner, campaign briefings and chances to meet members of the Shadow Cabinet. The reply-paid envelope was addressed to Hobsbawm Macaulay Communications in Soho’s Poland Street. Within five years, the event had grown considerably in stature. The 1996 dinner saw 450 tickets sold out a month before it was held in July. Hobsbawm Macaulay refused to release the guest list. “This is a private function”, an employee explained. “People who have bought tickets have asked not to have their names disclosed.” Names that did slip out included Bruce Shepherd, managing director of Shepherd Offshore; Caparo’s Swraj Paul; Ulster Unionist David Montgomery, chief executive of the Mirror Group; and Hanson director Peter Harper, the company’s linkman to Labour.”
Much of their work involved pandering to the vanity of the rich who wish to meet the famous: “But the prize for hypocrisy goes to the Labour politicians who condemned Prince Edward’s wife for exploiting her royal connections, while averting their gaze from the Chancellor’s wife, Sarah Macaulay. Over the years she and Julia Hobsbawm built up a successful public-relations firm. Early on, they had significant help, from Geoffrey Robinson, who was then buying his way into Gordon Brown’s favour and Tony Blair’s government. He lavished some £100,000 on fees to Hobsbawm Macaulay, partly in payment for organising his hospitality: once again, the rich met the famous.”(Bruce Anderson The Spectator, April 14, 2001) http://pinkindustry.wordpress.com/editorial-intelligence/
The summer of 1997 was an extraordinary time for Britain. Tony Blair had just won a triumphant election, the Spice Girls had goosed Prince Charles, and a bubbling London scene was busy ushering in a new era of Cool Britannia. Last but not least, Michael Bloomberg was about to burst onto the social scene. Bloomberg hired a modish public-relations outfit to set up his own private party network. Hobsbawm & McCaulay (HMC) offered a sort of bespoke introduction service to the city’s elite, organizing a series of discreet, informal dinners with social tastemakers like newspaper baron Conrad Black (now Lord Black of Crossharbour to you) and his wife, the conservative commentator Barbara Amiel, through to the influential art dealer Jay Jopling. “Mike wanted to be launched, and it was our job to introduce him, judiciously, to everyone who mattered,” says one who works with Hobsbawm, whom the industry describes as having “one of the most envied little black books” in London. “He was unknown one minute — and very hot the next.”
Hobsbawn is a member of the, “British American Project for the Successor Generation”, to give it its original, and now quietly forgotten, title, is an elite corporate/political talking and networking organisation. Its aims are to ensure that the left and liberal intelligentsia are not hostile to US foreign policy interests. It was founded in 1985. http://powerbase.info/index.php/British_American_Project
A survey completed after the referendum projected approximately 25% of those who voted , “No” did so in consequence of the extensive psychological brainwashing by heavily biased anti-independence media propaganda. The mainstream media outlet in Scotland, the BBC was singled out as being the most influential broadcaster. It follows therefore that a balanced media would have undoubtedly resulted in a massive, “Yes” vote. In any future referendum the, “Yes” side would be well advised to have in place robust systems designed to ensure a balanced media.
A Labour Party pedigree seems to be a predominant requirement within the BBC Scotland senior management team and a number of line managers and reporters, likely through nepotism and needs to be cleared out so that the organization fulfills it’s remit, to be accountable to the Scottish public. The organization also needs to be formally separated from London so that it can be truly independent. An over reaching Scottish body could be appointed, including members of the public.
Mainstream newspapers present an on-going problem going forward since they are owned by individuals, organizations outwith Scotland with result that editorial control is primarily unfairly biased against an independent Scotland. If only the, “Sun” could be persuaded to support independence next time ?? We live in hope.
Gaining inspiration from the enthusiasm of, Yes” campaigners a record of their, “anti-bias” march on the BBC Headquarters in Glasgow is attached. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttDkVoTYpLA#t=18
Examples of Blatant BBC Scotland Anti-Referendum Reporting Bias
12 January 2012: Entirely one sided report broadcast by British Forces Broadcasting Service, (BFBS) and this before any referendum. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9fXpq9V41Iw
24 January 2012: Paxman out of touch with constitutional realities. As Mark Hennessy of the ‘Irish Times’ dryly observes “Most people watching that interview with Jeremy Paxman – I’m sure Alex Salmond would be very, very glad if he was to get more interviews like that by English presenters. It’s certainly the picture of the patronizing Englishman, and that’s going. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=akfN7bO_2Bc
28 January 2012: A few good reasons for Scotland to be independent of Westminster rule. Powerful expose of Westminster abuse of power https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iu-ttEDxgNs
9 February 2012: Patten meets Alex Salmond in BBC bias row. But the apology from BBC Reporting Scotland is still outstanding after they were censured by the BBC Trust and Patten has moved on. Evidently the BBC Scotland bias is Labour inspired. whilst in England the Tory Party reigns supreme. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HUKMD0LDWWA
3 April 2012 BBC report – Stephanie Flanders flawed and biased analysis on the drivers behind Scotland’s independence referendum https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q-5R5lYv9yY
14 April 2012: This provides explanation as to the BBC Scotland bias against Independence. BBC Scotland has decided to correct the errors contained in an online article it published on Saturday, fully two days after one of the most blatant pieces of politically motivated articles ever published by the state broadcaster appeared as the number one story in Scotland, the corporation quietly removed the offending fiction and replaced it with fact. Comment on how the BBC used headlines claiming the Deputy F.M made statements when she did not say anything that the headlines claimed https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kY4P9pTdw4o
30 April 2012: Fantastic. I can verify BBC bias very clearly. Being a Yes supporter and following several of the movements happening around that, and seeing how popular they have become, with events on EVERY DAY OF THE WEEK attracting a fair number of people… The BBC has completely ignored them. Debate meetings happening with the No side pulling out at the last minute, and very little of a No grassroots movement to speak of. This instant a supposed grassroots movement for No came about, Vote No Borders, funded by a wealthy Tory backer and investment banker, the BBC had a report all set to go, which didn’t even ask how a brand new grassroots movement could have made £150,000 in money on the same day as launching its website… Just complete propaganda machine I’m afraid. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tG3XtCmqI64
14 Jun 2012: First Minister Alex Salmond is about to expose the Scottish Labour party’s hypocrisy over modern apprenticeships, when the live broadcast is inexplicably cut short by BBC Scotland. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=57-0Or67iiw
20 October 2012: SNP party leader Alex Salmond gets a difficult interview with Andrew Neil on the future of Scotland, with respect to the proposed referendum on Scottish independence from the UK, or more specifically to Alexa Salmond, independence from Westminster! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q42xOo7HiCE
29 October 2013: BBC collude with Better Together presenting a clearly staged video report outside the local Scotmid. All involved were Better Together agents, some pretending to be members of the public for the benefit of the camera’s. http://wingsoverscotland.com/identity-parade/#more-43333 Check out Blair Henry and his photographic links to the Scotmid store used as background in the video.
22 January 2014: There are continual concerns at the running of the news operation which have now reached London but which simply don’t move Kenny McQuarrie whose job it is to guarantee an impartial and accurate news service without which there will be no BBC Scotland. It is the basis of the whole organization. http://derekbateman.co.uk/2014/01/22/breaking-newsbbc-threatens-academic/
13 February 2014: Question Time. Totally unbalanced discussion all anti Scot. Both Ireland and Australia used the pound after independence from Britain for a transitional period so why cant Scotland? The truth is they can but Westminster is using this as an opportunity to scare Scots into voting their way. They are making a big mistake and will pay for treating Scots like fools. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1qYhgoQw8AQ
11 March 2014: They didn’t want Scotland to know. The BBC executives were terribly sure about many things but didn’t seem to know much about this item. It’s almost impossible to believe that a directive has not been given to hide good news stories and emphasis bad news stories. If we lose the referendum on this basis, there is going to be so much hate about. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7a3apRD-ymk
11 March 2014: BBC bias on different ‘news /factual’ programmes standard answer followed by a rejection of the claim. Sure Nicky Clark is a political expert and his opinion was of such gravitas it could go without a chance to allow a differing opinion. Absolutely rotten to the core, no confidence in the BBC who will lose a potential £300million in license fee subscription. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RmuoZVJTc-Y
11 March 2014: The BBC is a UK Government publicly funded propaganda channel. Over the past few months there has been gross bias toward the Better Together No camp. It could also be described in other ways like though control or censorship through giving a very disproportionate amount of time to that pseudo Scotsman Alistair Darling, who is actually English and a millionaire. He can insult with total immunity, calling Yes voters Nazi’s and making really distasteful allegations. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HkHURxtyH14
1 May 2014: Despite attacks by pro-Union politicians over remarks made by Alex Salmond about President Putin dominating BBC news, the BBC edited this important response from Mr Salmond OUT of its news bulletins. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rwsPTmLcAp4
11 May 2014: The BBC is the propaganda wing of the government. There’s no direct collusion which gives a sense of impartiality but there’s tacit acceptance in the BBC from the top down that they are that propaganda wing. Now, regardless of which political party is in power, the BBC does sway the stories the way that party wants them presented with a modicum of criticism of that party’s perspective, but the criticisms are wholly inadequate, almost intentionally so. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KqoIZxfT398
8 July 2014: Abuse of the armed forces of Scotland by Westminster. All members of the forces sent letter instructing them to vote, “No”. They will stop at nothing to keep Scotland shackled and treated with contempt. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7PfP7u-QGRo
8 August 2014: Dan Snow, son of Peter Snow, husband of Lady Edwina Grosvenor (daughter of Duke of Westminster), great-great grandson of David Lloyd George, Oxford and Balliol, embedded in the British Establishment, mounts a campaign to get 200 rich celebrity pals to engage in nauseating sycophancy to keep Scots from voting to leave the UK that has done so well by Dan and his rich friends. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Uz0TsfjFOY
8 August 2014: An exclusive look into mainstream media bias and the techniques they use to influence the independence debate. ‘The Bigger The Lie’ focuses on the significant research of Professor John Robertson into media bias during the Scottish Independence Referendum. The film covers Professor Robertson’s meticulous approach to the research and the subsequent fall out. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ajd4R-9BEIw
8 August 2014: Unadulterated BBC bias in sickeningly sycophantic Radio 4 profile of ‘independent’ Treasury Head Sir Nicholas Macpherson – politically partial, empire devotee, vested interests, Eton-educated, 30,0000 acre estate in Wester Ross and bankers best friend all rolled into one. No friend of Scottish independence, this is the guy behind the currency union denial. . http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b04f8fbg
20 August 2014: BBC News Scotland gives the negative dominance over the positive slanting the article against the, “Yes” vote.. An independence “Yes” vote would break up the BBC with “devastating” consequences for Scottish broadcasting. The prediction was made by shadow Scottish secretary Margaret Curran, Labour Party and former BBC Director General Lord Birt. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-politics-28863806
4 September 2014: Jeane Freeman does a brilliant job here in the face of a hectoring Andrew Neil, the archetypal Brit/Scot journalist, worried about polls narrowing, making the fatal mistake of trying to patronize and bully one of the most incisive voices in Scottish politics. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=23m6CukRUGM
10 September 2014: The BBC are still spouting lies every chance they get. Breaking their own charter, is in fact breaking their contract with us, who pay for their services. We’re supposed to get NEWS not PROPAGANDA. It’s time for a campaign of non-payment of the licence fee. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WY64-t3QbcA
11 September 2014: There should be an independent inquiry into the BBC bias during the referendum. It is a matter of saving democracy at this point. I would have happily taken a ‘no’ vote in the referendum, but with all the bias and hate spewed by the media and people on the no side, I have turned from being on the fence moderate to an SNP supporter all the way now. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mzfSsd8hKtY
11 September 2014: BBC illegal activities exposed by the great Stuart Cosgrove The extraordinary bias shown by the BBC relates to their reporting the negative comments of business heads as factual major news when they are obviously simply opinions. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YkZmxWX-JtE
13 September 2014: On the day of one of the biggest political rallies Scotland has ever seen:BBC national news reports ‘thousands from across UK in pro-union rally’ when it was actually an organized Orange Order march. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TSOu8f549iM
19 September 2014: Leaked news, mob mentality, cybernats and the baby news. We look at some of the dirty underground tactics that cropped up during the Scottish Independence campaigns. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SK6tWsTDf74
6 October 2014: WRITING OFF SCOTLAND explores the research of Dr David Patrick into press bias during the independence campaign. Carried out over Scotland’s most politically important year in centuries, the study’s findings are a shocking indictment of the role of the UK press in the independence debate. We all know newspapers take political positions but, uniquely for a western democracy, the entire media are against independence. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2bYajHIcXMk
13 October 2014. The BBC’s ‘Amazing Litany’ Of Bias: BBC coverage of the Scottish independence referendum is a compelling example of deep establishment bias. Some critics have characterized the BBC’s coverage, in particular, as though Scotland is merely a region or a county of the United Kingdom called ‘Scotlandshire’. http://medialens.org/index.php?option=com_acymailing&ctrl=archive&task=view&mailid=276&tmpl=component
caltonjock 