The jewel in the crown of Samizdata.net
A blog for people with a critically rational individualist perspective. We are developing the social individualist meta-context for the future. From the very serious to the extremely frivolous... lets see what is on the mind of the Samizdata people.

Samizdata, derived from Samizdat /n. a system of clandestine publication of banned literature in the USSR
[Russ.,= self-publishing house]
There is much to find for those who look
We are not alone
Made possible by...
 
May 13, 2008
Tuesday
 
 
Samizdata quote of the day
Michael Jennings (London)  Slogans/quotations

Actually, it is even worse than that.

- An unnamed BBC news journalist with whom I unexpectedly found myself drinking on Saturday, when asked if the BBC really is the Stalinist bureaucracy it is reputed to be.

Comments

OK, I'll bite. On behalf of all of us, How can it be worse that Stalinist?


Posted by nick g. at May 13, 2008 06:25 AM

Maoist? Brownite?


Posted by Tom Paine at May 13, 2008 07:07 AM

The try to be stalinist, but they are no good at it?


Posted by CountingCats at May 13, 2008 08:28 AM

They try to be stalinist, but are no good at it?


Posted by CountingCats at May 13, 2008 08:29 AM

At a meeting several weeks ago I heard almost exactly the same quote from a senior BBC programming director. His main gripe was not just the faceless bureaucracy soaking up public funds but that the recent BBC 'makeover' appeared to just be another Potemkin village. Almost 3 years ago it was estimated that more than 3,700 support staff could be culled from Auntie's ranks with no loss of quality in programming. Now, not even taking into account the potential of redundancy of many positions due to emergent technologies, that figure is apparently closer to over 7,000.

Perhaps the most damning remark was that the BBC was described as 'not quite a curate's egg', i.e. while the curate's egg might have been good in parts there is little to see now that is good about the media giant that to all observers (even their own) appears to be completely out of touch and completely out of any semblence of control.


Posted by Julian Taylor at May 13, 2008 11:05 AM

Well, maybe we need the BBC to fall apart from the inside? It is obvious to all that it is creaking ever further leftwards, could this be the beginning of the end?


Posted by batman at May 13, 2008 12:29 PM

What's worse?

That old saw:

The inmates have taken over the asylum.

comes to mind.

Next: consider the composition of the inmates, and how they came to be there, and how they came to take over.


Posted by RRS at May 13, 2008 02:26 PM

I think the sentiment meant was "It is even worse than widely believed" rather than "It is worse than Stalin", in truth, but I couldn't resist posting it none the less. I then heard more of a story of vast numbers of consultants and bureaucrats who do not understand what is going on and trying to cut costs by sacking people almost at random. My sympathy for the BBC as an institution is not high, but from the description it did not sound like a fun place to work.


Posted by Michael Jennings at May 13, 2008 06:36 PM

Well, Paulist would be worse than Stalinist, because he wants us to mind our own business. It's a madness, I say, madness! That's why I support John "The Pro-Any-War, anti free-speach, Environmentalist Compassionate More-or-Less-Conservative" McCain!


Posted by Typical User at May 13, 2008 10:28 PM

Don't forget "Use-taxpayer-money-to-re-elect-incumbents-while-silencing-opposition" McCain.


Posted by Laird at May 13, 2008 11:12 PM

The BBC is one among hundreds of channels on my cable station. I saw it (5 mins)about three years ago and never again! It really is so trite and authoritarian. Regrettably a cent or two from my cable sub goes to those monkeys.

So far my cable station won't give me Fox Bussiness, a much better news source. Go figure?


Posted by Howard R Gray at May 19, 2008 08:46 AM

People who snear at John McCain are helping make the United States a vast B.B.C.

The Marxist assumptions and doctrines (often without using the word "Marxist") that the B.B.C. people were taught in school and university are exactly what Senator Obama and the class-of-1968 Democrat leadership in Congress have also been taught.

As for the war - the alternative to winning the war is not "peace" it is defeat.

If you want lower taxes for companies and individuals (indeed an optional flat tax), an end to "earmarks", a roll back of farm subsidies (such as on eth) and entitlement program reform - then vote for John McCain.

But if you prefer to wait for a 100% pure candidate whilst the United States (and the West in general) has yet more decline - well then go f*** yourselves.


Posted by Paul Marks at May 19, 2008 01:33 PM
Post a comment









Remember personal info?


Enter anti-spambot Turing code:





Select some text and click this to format it as a quote Make the selected text bold Make the selected text italic Add a web link


Basic html active.

Alas, but for obscure reasons Mozilla, Mac and Linux users shall not harness to power of the push-button formatting options and shall therefore compose basic html with their bare hands. Yet Mozilla, Mac and Linux users shall not fear, for we shall reveal forthwith the mysteries of Basic Html:

<strong>This text in-between is bold</strong>

<em>This text is in italics</em>

And
<blockquote>This is a quote</blockquote>
Remember to close your opened tags as such: <tag> tagged text and closing </tag> and we promise you will get out of here alive.

For adding links, either use the link URL button on the toolbar or enter your code by hand in the following format:
<a href="http://www.your_link.com">your link text or description here</a>

Movable Type's anti-spambot e-mail address protection is enabled.

You are a guest on private property. Have fun but please be civil and succinct. Blogroaches will be persecuted, not to mention IP banned.

Long third party quotes or articles will also be deleted... so just link to articles you think are germane to your comment, don't quote the whole bloody thing.