Thursday 13 May 2010

Francis Beckett: A pundit's revenge on pomposity


Author and journalist Francis Beckett has written a fabulously rude blog posting about pompous broadcasters, based on his recent appearance on London Broadcasting as a pundit sticking up for trade unions.
He writes: "Watching Adam Boulton’s scrap with Alastair Campbell, I remembered my extraordinary visit to London Broadcasting a few weeks back, to be interviewed by a young woman called Petrie Hosken, who beats even Adam Boulton for self-regarding pomposity.
"I’d been invited in to talk about trade unions, and listened to one of those chortling introductions culled from the pages of the Daily Mail, all about greedy union bosses and union members who were still living in the dark ages, and the rest of the anti-union clichés. So when Ms Hosken turned to me, I didn’t wait for the question, but dived straight in, explaining that unions protected workers against exploitation. I hadn't expected that this would make her incandescent with fury. The moment she could get in, she told me furiously: “You’re the rudest person I’ve ever had in my studio.”
Beckett concludes: "I guess what it tells us is that, from distinguished folk like Adam Boulton to obscure ones like Ms Hosken, broadcasters, if they're a bit feeble-minded, turn into pompous and self-regarding folk who can't bear to have their views challenged. They're not used to it."

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