O/T:- Defund the bbc.

[BigFatPie]

https://twitter.com/ppollingnumbers/...603983874?s=21

Biden still ahead by 10 points. The general opinion appears to be that Trump got a small boost from the RNC, but that’s now wearing off.

If you can still get Biden at evens, dip your bread.

[Elite_Pie]

If you can still get Biden at evens, dip your bread.

In any normal betting market I would agree, but this event will be decided by the American electorate. Despite what I would guess must be a good education system over there, their stupidity appears to know no bounds. Trump's gross mishandling of Covid-19 alone should be enough to see him out of office in disgrace, but when he tells them he's "done a really great job", half of them seem to believe him.

My regret is that when Trump went to 7/4 I waited for 2/1. I really wish I had taken advantage of the 7/4.

[BigFatPie]

I see the incoming Director-General intends to tackle this, not just in news output but also the broader viewing offer such as comedy. I'll believe it when I see it, but he's entirely correct to do so. At present the BBC often seems to assume that the entire country thinks like London. To be fair they are not the only broadcaster making that mistake, but given that they receive licence-fee payer money they have a greater responsibility than any to be balanced in their output.

The right/left comedy debate is one of the more stupid ones. The Tories have been in power for 10 years, is it surprising the majority of what passes for satire is aimed in their direction?

The ex Tory DG has no doubt got a brief to make the BBC as unwatchable as possible, when it will be conveniently scrapped/flogged off to mates because no one’s bothered about it anymore.

[jackal2]

The right/left comedy debate is one of the more stupid ones. The Tories have been in power for 10 years, is it surprising the majority of what passes for satire is aimed in their direction?

I don't recall the output being much different when Blair and Brown were in control. A bit of lampooning maybe, and stronger attacks on Blair in more recent years when the liberal left disowned him, but not the level of cynicism and venom that has been directed at Conservative politicians in and out of power for many years.

[BigFatPie]

I don't recall the output being much different when Blair and Brown were in control. A bit of lampooning maybe, and stronger attacks on Blair in more recent years when the liberal left disowned him, but not the level of cynicism and venom that has been directed at Conservative politicians in and out of power for many years.

So the new DG has wet his pants because they didn’t take the piss enough out of a government from 10 years ago?? Really? Also, do you remember the treatment Corbyn got from virtually the whole media? He never got near power.

Also, also, if you think that any comedian worth their salt shouldn’t be taking the mickey out of the current shower, pretty much all the time, I would have to heartily disagree.

[BigFatPie]

In any normal betting market I would agree, but this event will be decided by the American electorate. Despite what I would guess must be a good education system over there, their stupidity appears to know no bounds. Trump's gross mishandling of Covid-19 alone should be enough to see him out of office in disgrace, but when he tells them he's "done a really great job", half of them seem to believe him.

My regret is that when Trump went to 7/4 I waited for 2/1. I really wish I had taken advantage of the 7/4.

Yeah betting on the outcome is, even at this point, a hazardous business, but Biden’s figures at this stage are apparently similar to Obama’s in 08. If your life depended on it, there’s only one way you’d go.

[drillerpie]

If you can still get Biden at evens, dip your bread.

It's not really a case of "if you can still get evens" - his odds are drifting and if you wait a few days you'll probably get better than evens.

[BigFatPie]

It's not really a case of "if you can still get evens" - his odds are drifting and if you wait a few days you'll probably get better than evens.

Good luck if you do. If Biden’s odds drift further, it won’t be to do with what the polls are showing.

https://twitter.com/micahcohen/statu...320121861?s=21

[OP67]

Good luck if you do. If Biden’s odds drift further, it won’t be to do with what the polls are showing.

https://twitter.com/micahcohen/statu...320121861?s=21

Since when have polls shown us anything? The media makes them blatantly bias in their favour, the BBC are no different

[jackal2]

So the new DG has wet his pants because they didn’t take the piss enough out of a government from 10 years ago?? Really?

No, I agree that the new DG will be focused on the current situation. The reason I mentioned the previous situation under 13 years of Labour government is because you implied that the Conservatives' 10 years in power makes them an obvious target. I'm sure it does, but I don't think the Labour Government of even longer standing was subject to the same treatment by the BBC. Even in opposition, the Conservatives took more flack from the never-ending procession of liberal/left comedians and commentators. The lame justification was/is often given that they are "kicking upwards" against the Tory aristocracy, which is quite ironic when quite a few of the 'kickers' come from the Oxbridge mafia or other privileged backgrounds themselves.

Also, do you remember the treatment Corbyn got from virtually the whole media? He never got near power.

Yes. And you may recall that despite my own politics I expressed the view on several occasions on this board that the treatment of Corbyn was at times unfair. I don't recall much of that treatment coming from the comedy and entertainment circles though. It was unsurprisingly the right-wing press and some Blairite journalists who played the man rather than his policies and I genuinely didn't think he deserved that. I disagreed with his politics, but I respected the sincerity with which he held his views and the courtesy and patience he showed in the face of some unfair personal attacks.

Also, also, if you think that any comedian worth their salt shouldn’t be taking the mickey out of the current shower, pretty much all the time, I would have to heartily disagree.

I don’t mind comedians taking the mickey out of left or right-wing politicians including the Government, but that’s the problem: in recent years on many BBC comedy/commentary shows it’s pretty much a one-way liberal/left narrative, hence the observation made by Andrew Neil and the new BBC DG’s own acknowledgement.

I can laugh at the material of left-wing comics if they are good. I watch a lot of Stewart Lee’s stuff and I like the way he uses satire and deconstruction, even though I don’t necessarily agree with his (apparent) political conclusions. I like Frankie Boyle even though he is avidly anti-Tory and deemed “offensive” by some. I think they’re both very sharp and talented. I’m also a big fan of Dave Gorman, whose material is sometimes gently ‘woke’ but brilliant in a geeky kind of way.

I’d just like to see more comedians of the same ilk from the opposite/different perspective, to cater for all views and tastes, which a national broadcaster should do. Hopefully they are out there, and if they aren’t, then perhaps it’s precisely because there’s not enough opportunities for them to get a break. Meanwhile, some liberal/left-wing comics who are frankly not good at all appear to get TV gigs quite easily for no other apparent reason than they pander to the hitherto preferred audience.

I suppose there’s another way of looking at it, though. As you say, the Conservatives have been in power for 10 years while broadcasters like the Beeb and Channel 4 have been churning out all of this one-dimensional material, so it obviously hasn’t indoctrinated audiences or voters. In fact, many people north of Watford probably might conclude that this bunch of liberal/left luvvies say nothing to them about their lives, and either turn off the TV or take delight in actively rejecting their ideology. Eddie Izzard in particular seems to generate a Tory win wherever he goes!