Comments on Tory Bear - right-wing political gossip: When is a briefing not a briefing?

Oh dear, what has Will Straw been smoking? His ar...

2010-02-04T09:09:10.395Z

Oh dear, what has Will Straw been smoking?

His argument would mean that it would be ok to say "Will Straw, son of hapless Cabinet Minister Jack Straw, denied that he sold drugs to others" and then to put that in bold and claim that he sold drugs to others (which he has clearly denied doing).

When you get something as factually wrong as this, best to fess up and move on. A bit like lying to the electorate about WMD like the then Foreign Secretary did (I wonder who THAT was...)!

What makes me laugh is how they think that the ver...

2010-02-04T01:06:40.090Z

What makes me laugh is how they think that the very next day after such an event we would all go and follow our orders from Chairman Pickles. Surely, if we had the organisation they are crediting us with we would not have blown our cover so early on.

Secondly, I laugh because the thought of a blogger being awake at 7am for their email briefing is absurd to even fathom

Oh, and that this was some kind of nefarious event. If that were the case why did we hold it in a room next door to an event that Michael White and Alex Hilton were both at. Michael White even popped his head around the door early on... A few hours before leaving the hotel wearing a pink beret and complimenting a young man on his shoes.

Hold on a second. We didn't accuse Eric Pic...

2010-02-04T00:55:23.003Z
Hold on a second. We didn't accuse Eric Pickles of offering 7am emails we just reproduced the anonymous email...

So, it doesn't matter if you publish a lie, Mr Straw, so long as you were not the person who made it up?

You do realise that, as a legal defence, that argument hold no water?

Oh dear - you Tories really get needled easily don...

2010-02-04T00:50:52.015Z
Oh dear - you Tories really get needled easily don't you?

This blog would of course never publish any unsubstantiated gossip nor ask any questions eh? People in glass houses Harry?

LC and LFF only asked the question - it's the Tories who started frothing at the mouth and suddenly all turned up minutes after, professing your independence.

I think that says it all really.

"Hey hey hey, I didn't write it, I just c...

2010-02-03T22:10:05.181Z
"Hey hey hey, I didn't write it, I just chose to publish it without corroboration"

That is as weak a defence as Jack Straw employed in front of Chilcott.

I am wondering what I would have to anonymously write for Will Straw to publish it.

Perhaps if I sent the Times an anonymous story they would just run it through the presses and claim it was nout to do with them.

Good to see that investigative journalism is at th...

2010-02-03T20:59:04.889Z
Good to see that investigative journalism is at the forefront of LLF....
"we just reproduced the anonymous email"

TB - I've just sent you an anoymous e-mail confirming Will & Sunny are fuckwits

@Soho_Political: Well, I have here an anonymous em...

2010-02-03T19:47:46.458Z
@Soho_Political: Well, I have here an anonymous email that says that you f**k pigs.

I trust that you have no problems with me quoting said email, along with a statement that - as of going to press - Soho "Pig F**ker" Political has not yet denied the allegations, although they might not be true, along with context quotes from a religious leader condemning sin and a butcher claiming that it spoils the taste of the meat.

After all, there'd be nothing false in my post - I'm just reproducing the content of an email and I'm even questioning its veracity...

"...such blatent [sic] lies from Left Foot Fo...

2010-02-03T16:38:24.209Z
"...such blatent [sic] lies from Left Foot Forward and Liberal Conspiracy..."

From where I am sitting, all Sunny and Will did was reproduce an email, the details of which they openly said were subject to dispute. So, to be clear, what blatant lies are we talking about here? What untruths did Will and Sunny actually tell? Or have you just smeared them as liars for no reason? Is it your claim, perhaps, that there was no such email sent to them? That they made the whole thing up? That is certainly what is implied by this line:

"It is no surprise that this sort of thing has happened again. After a Christmas lunch for some online folk organised by the party, James Macintyre of the New Statesman made up similar ridiculous spin about the event."

I'm sure we'd all appreciate clarification as to precisely what it is that you are alleging.

Did you even read the post i wrote or just what yo...

2010-02-03T16:18:06.346Z
Did you even read the post i wrote or just what you wanted to see?

"rankly the fact that almost everyone who was in the room last night was willing to defend what was said and dispuite such blatent lies from Left Foot Forward and Liberal Conspiracy is not evidence of a coordinated attack but evidence of how far wide of the mark these made up allegations are."

TB and here's you talking about the "Labo...

2010-02-03T16:17:02.635Z
TB and here's you talking about the "Labour machine" yet as soon as LFF mentions your little coterie the entire Tory bloggersphere drops in to rebut, almost as if General Pickles had issued orders to the faithful.

As to me being "new to this", well, yeah, perhaps under this sobriquet, but I am grateful for your paternalism.

Who pays for your bloomberg data Shamik?

2010-02-03T16:16:20.302Z
Who pays for your bloomberg data Shamik?

"reprinting data sent to him from above in gr...

2010-02-03T16:15:24.673Z
"reprinting data sent to him from above in graph form"

WTF?

It's called research. The data we use isn't sent to us "from above".

If you wanna publish graphs to back up your stories, try this website you might have heard of called Google, then use a little programme called Excel.

It ain't rocket science; anyone can do it.

"we just reproduced the anonymous email"...

2010-02-03T16:02:44.817Z
"we just reproduced the anonymous email"

Will, a relative of mine died in a plane crash in West Africa leaving $25 million in a bank in Lagos. If you are willing to help me free this money from corrupt officials, I will willingly share it with you and help you spend it on time shares in the Balearics.

Good Lord the idea of 7am briefings fills one with...

2010-02-03T16:01:41.791Z
Good Lord the idea of 7am briefings fills one with absolute dread. However the idea that CCHQ would suggest such a thing to a room full of bloggers makes one chuckle so much that the feeling of dread subsides.
Will and Sunny, do follow Pickles' example though. Sit down and have a doughnut, and reconsider your position.

I know you are new to all this Richard but maybe c...

2010-02-03T15:56:39.866Z
I know you are new to all this Richard but maybe consider taking your head out of your own arse before engaging. Read what I said in that tweet, and the quote I gave to Will, and what I just put in that post.

At all times I have made it clear that it was a joke. We were encouraged to rebut labour lies and that is exactly what is going on here. There was no briefing and there will be no memos. This election will be dirty because of the desperation of Labour, the point that anyone with half a brain cell would realise Pickles was making. So yeah, keep trying.

Popcorn time. TB you seem to have glossed over th...

2010-02-03T15:54:03.038Z
Popcorn time.

TB you seem to have glossed over the fact that you tweeted

"Pickles on form. To bloggers: "This is going to be a very dirty election. That's where you come in... (Pause) ...for rebuttal""

Tories planning to make this a dirty election, eh?

I wasn't at the party but was invited, sadly c...

2010-02-03T15:52:01.750Z
I wasn't at the party but was invited, sadly couldn't make it, but from all the accounts I have heard from people who were there not a single one mentioned email briefings. Indeed I've not heard anyone except Leftist bloggers refer to the gathering as a "briefing" - it was a drinks reception and kareoke!

What Will and Sunny forget is "evidence based journalism" is not a case of reprinting anonymous emails, in a context that implies they are truthful, even if denied, but instead a case of checking that evidence is true.

The Left just love conspiracy theories I guess.

David
www.davidbreaker.com

You did accuse him. You even put it in bold...

2010-02-03T15:46:01.667Z
You did accuse him. You even put it in bold

Will Straw: political nepotism at its best.

2010-02-03T15:45:00.854Z
Will Straw: political nepotism at its best.

Hold on a second. We didn't accuse Eric Pickle...

2010-02-03T15:40:54.231Z
Hold on a second. We didn't accuse Eric Pickles of offering 7am emails we just reproduced the anonymous email and then the quotes from you and Shane Greer.

Indeed, we were careful to say: "Shane Greer, who was at the event, denied that bloggers were offered morning emails."

Our headline says: "Key role for Tory bloggers in rebutting Labour" which was corroborated by you and Shane Greer.

So our evidence-based approach included:
1) Copying the text of the anonymous email
2) Outlining that some of the content was questioned by another source (ie Shane Greer)
3) Offering two quotes (from you and Shane) about rebuttal
4) Linking to Lazy Hyena's "accurate" account of what Pickles said to corroborate your account.

The story as we reported still stands so please be careful what you assert.

Comments on Tory Bear - right-wing political gossip: When is a briefing not a briefing?

Oh dear, what has Will Straw been smoking? His ar...

What makes me laugh is how they think that the ver...

Hold on a second. We didn't accuse Eric Pic...

Oh dear - you Tories really get needled easily don...

"Hey hey hey, I didn't write it, I just c...

Good to see that investigative journalism is at th...

@Soho_Political: Well, I have here an anonymous em...

"...such blatent [sic] lies from Left Foot Fo...

Did you even read the post i wrote or just what yo...

TB and here's you talking about the "Labo...

Who pays for your bloomberg data Shamik?

"reprinting data sent to him from above in gr...

"we just reproduced the anonymous email"...

Good Lord the idea of 7am briefings fills one with...

I know you are new to all this Richard but maybe c...

Popcorn time. TB you seem to have glossed over th...

I wasn't at the party but was invited, sadly c...

You did accuse him. You even put it in bold...

Will Straw: political nepotism at its best.

Hold on a second. We didn't accuse Eric Pickle...