WE are watching YOU!
Politics and digital media have been fighting something of a running battle this week. It’s been a case of Web 2.’Oh no’ for the Labour party, as they struggle to recover from a couple of blunders made in the ether which have come back to haunt them. And the Metropolitan Police force are having a torrid time fighting back against allegations of civil liberties infringements as more footage recorded by citizens makes its way onto youtube and into the public domain.
Paul Blanchard, a Labour Councillor, made some ill-advised remarks on facebook concerning the disappearance of missing chef Claudia Lawrence. An avowed atheist, Blanchard dismissed the calls for prayers for Lawrence’s safety, saying, “Of all the pointless things to do, praying wins the prize.” Whatever his personal beliefs, which he is entitled to hold, Blanchard should have exercised some discretion. As a public figure, and one representing a number of constituents, to post contentious comments on a sensitive subject on the world’s biggest social networking site ranks amongst the most stupid things a politician could do.
Gordon Brown and Damian McBride
The uproar over Damian McBride’s alleged smear campaign which erupted this week is all the result of a few stray emails making their way into the public domain through an eager media. Once again, McBride should have known better than to put insulting and damaging comments into an email. Email, although we all use it every day, is not the most secure method of communication, especially for this type of tactic. This battle originally erupted on the BBC Daily Politics Show, as the ‘battle of the bloggers’. Influential blogger Guido Fawkes (real name Paul Staines) accused Derek Draper, senior Labour blogger of complicity during the attempted smear campaign. This issue is refusing to disappear for the Labour party and highlights the potential power of bloggers, and the damage they can cause to an individual or organisation.
And finally, the Metropolitan Police are suffering at the hands of two incidents, filmed by protesters at the recent G20 summit in London. Both pieces of footage appear to show some heavy handed tactics be police officers marshalling protesters. The first incident which came to light showed the apparent unprovoked attack on Ian Tomlinson, who was not even protesting that day, by a nearby officer, Tomlinson died from
Ian Tomlinson
a heart attack just a few minutes later. The second incident shows an officer slapping a woman and then hitting her legs forcefully with his baton; the woman appears to be demonstrating peacefully at this point. Whatever the truth of these shocking incidents, the lesson for the police to be learned is clear. Their actions are always being watched, and in this current era of social media, probably being filmed too. We, as citizens, consumers and observers have more oppourtunity than ever to uncover and discuss the actions of our politcians and guardians.
In fact, this is the lesson for all of the politicians and public figures making stupid mistakes for all to see this week, remember we are watching!!!
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April 18th, 2009 at 4:49 am
The met police attacks on those two people are horrendous. This week I have seen a number of ridiculous happenings being reported in the news.
I’m sure some of you will have seen the photos/video (Don’t watch the video…it’s disturbing!) of a woman who jumped the fence of a polar bear enclosure at Berlin Zoo…? Polar bears may look cute and cuddly, but articles have described them, and quite rightly so, as ‘one of the worlds most fearsome predators’. Clearly she must have been one filling short of a sandwich!
However, the point that I am trying to make is that if the Met police continue to knock people down unnecessarily, they will ultimately ruin their public perception. It’s hard to associate safety and protection with something you’re made to fear.
Now then…who wants to put a polar bear in a met uniform and play spot the difference?