Friday 6 May 2011

Quotes of the week: From shunning the popular press to the world's deadliest would-be journalist


Roy Greenslade in Media Guardian:
"It is time for the responsible, serious section of the British press to disengage from any coalition with the popular newspapers. The willingness to ignore their misconduct has led us all astray and increased the public's lack of trust in all journalism."

Stephen Glover in the Independent on the royal wedding: "The press loved the wedding because it had everything it wanted. Never again. It won't be long before it gets frustrated, whenever its access to the over-hyped golden couple is barred. There will be stand-offs and complaints on both sides, pictures snatched by paparazzi, stories that not all is going entirely swimmingly, and endless columns speculating about their state of mind. It will be impossible not to feel sorry for William and Kate and impossible, too, not to reflect that they and their advisers have stirred up a voracious monster they can never tame."

Peter Higgins from Oxford in a letter to the Guardian: "Could it be that the little bridesmaid to Kate's right on the balcony photographs – her face glum and hands over her ears – is a Guardian reader?"

japester in a letter to MediaGuardian: "B2B publishers have always seen journalism as a cost to be managed rather than a resource to be invested in. In digital media, content is even more crucial and so publishers have to work harder to devalue it. Most 'bloggers' write for nothing, 'columnists' have to be paid."

'Concerned photographers' in a letter to London Mayor Boris Johnson: "Areas designated as public realm are often privately managed spaces that are subject to rules laid down by the private management companies. Most insidious of these is the outright banning of photography in some of our most widely enjoyed public spaces, such as Canary Wharf and theThames Walk between Tower Bridge and City Hall.We are bringing this issue to the attention of the general public to highlight the creeping restrictions to press freedom and the right of the citizen to photograph in a public place."

Kelvin MacKenzie in the Sun on the actor Hugh Bonneville: "I must congratulate Mr. Bonneville's PR people for keeping him in the news when nothing appears to be going on professionally."

Conservative MP for Hendon Matthew Offord in the Commons: "There has been much public discussion on the increasing use of super-injunctions and the ability of judges to decide policy instead of elected Parliamentarians. Is the Leader of the House aware of the anomaly this creates if, as has been rumoured, a member of this place seeks a super-injunction to prevent discussion of their activities?"

TIME magazine's headline on story about journalism graduate Vice-Admiral William McRaven, who commanded the SEAL team that hunted down and killed Osama Bin Laden: 'The Most Deadly Would-be Journalist in the World.'

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