Guardian‘s Terrible Dilemma over Corbyn

[Ken Burch]

http://dissidentvoice.org/2015/09/guardians-terrible-dilemma-over-corbyn/

All the Guardian’s inner circle of commentators, from Jonathan Freedland to Polly Toynbee, made public that they were dead against Corbyn from the moment he looked like he might win. When he served simply to justify claims that the Labour Party was a broad and tolerant church, these commentators were in favour of his standing. But as soon as he began to surge ahead, these same liberal-left pundits poured more scorn on him than they had reserved for any other party leader in living memory. In a few months Corbyn has endured more contempt from these fearless watchdogs of the left than the current Conservative prime minister, David Cameron, has suffered over many years.

The Guardian’s news coverage, meanwhile, followed exactly the same antagonistic formula as that of the right wing press: ignore the policy issues raised by Corbyn, concentrate on trivial or perceived personality flaws, and frame the stories in establishment-friendly ways. We have had to endure in the Guardian the same patently ridiculous, manufactured reports about Corbyn, portraying him as sexist, anti-semitic, unpatriotic, and much more.

We could expect the right wing media to exploit every opportunity to try to discredit Corbyn, but looking at the talk-backs it was clear Guardian readers expected much more from their paper than simple-minded character assassination.

Red neoliberals

The reality is that Corbyn poses a very serious challenge to supposedly liberal-left media like the Guardian and the Observer, which is why they hoped to ensure his candidacy was still-born and why, now he is leader, they are caught in a terrible dilemma.

While the Guardian and Observer market themselves as caring about justice and equality, but do nothing to bring them about apart from promoting tinkering with the present, hugely unjust, global neoliberal order, Corbyn’s rhetoric suggests that the apple cart needs upending.

[bbgrunt]

1. media just can't be trusted.

[non sociopath skin]

2. Good piece, Ken.

Tells it like it is. Thanks for posting.

The Skin

[T_i_B]

3. Haven't read either the Grauniad or the Observer in a while

I think a lot of the Grauniad & Observers woes are the same problems that the rest of the moderate left has. I would suggest that the issues are worse for the staunchly Blairite Observer than for the Grauniad. I could point to a number of examples from the soft left press, from Polly Toynbee's "hold your nose & vote Labour" argument trotted out in the run up to every polling day for years to pretty much anything ever written by the Independent's pet Blairite John Rentoul. Lots of sneering, negativity and taking people for granted, but you don't see very much at all in the way of positive ideas.

If I'm honest, there are many issues that people can pick up on with Jeremy Corbyn's leadership, but the moderate left from the Blairite wing of Labour, to the Lib Dems to the Grauniad & Independent need to start offering up some form of positive alternative, because that's something which hasn't been offered up my the moderate left in recent times. The result of this is that people have been deserting the moderate left in favour of UKIP and the Tories on the right, and of course Corbyn & the SNP on the left.

[muriel_volestrangler]

4. To give Toynbee her due, 'hold your nose' was a complaint that Labour leaders were too centrist

but aimed at keeping the Tories out.

2015:

Under first-past-the-post Labour, Greens and Lib Dems will have to vote-swap to keep the Tories out

...
Since most of you are leftish – our reader surveys find 5% Tory and 5% Lib Dem – how best to stop a Cameron second term? Pause here to contemplate what a Tory win threatens – such as leaving the EU, a £12bn cut in benefits, climate denial, an end to social housing, and a 1930s-sized state.

Let’s consider Green voters’ dilemma – that’s 24% of Guardian readers who believe, with good reason, in pushing British politics leftwards.

http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/apr/15/britain-rotten-electoral-system-nose-peg-vote-swap-tories-out

2005:

Disillusioned Labour voters should forget Iraq and think of the future

So forget retribution and look to the future: vote Blair, get Brown. Gordon Brown is all but certain to succeed and looks set to become this election's saviour. This architect of Labour's prudence has the aura of authenticity. His gruff ineptitude on radio and television and his old-fashioned stump speeches carry an air of virtue in these spin-phobic times. If he does not allow himself to be provoked into rows by some of the very provoking people around Blair in this campaign, he should emerge as the true victor.

http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2005/apr/06/election2005.labour

I didn't keep up with what she said about Corbyn, but she was to the left of Blair, for certain.

[T_i_B]

5. I have issues with the "clothes peg" argument

For one thing, it's an entirely negative argument, one that tacitly acknowledges that Labour policies have had many faults. And Labour desperately needs to be able to start offering positive reasons to vote for them.

Secondly, the "vote for us or it's the Tories" argument has been over used by Labour for many years now. Worse still, it's often been used by Blairites as a way to ride roughshod over anyone with concerns about Labour policy.

As to Toynbee's stance during the Labour leadership election, she was a big supporter of Yvette Cooper, whom I personally considered to be the weakest of the candidates on offer. And she did devote a lot of time to attacking Corbyn on the grounds that she considers him unelectable. The problem with this argument being that Yvette Cooper came across as even less likely to win votes for Labour.

[non sociopath skin]

6. The deep irony is that Corbyn was probably closest to the policies Toynbee peddles ...

... even unto his republicanism and atheism/agnosticism.

Why are these people so much in denial?

[LeftishBrit]

7. I agree about the need for positive messages - though in my own case Not Being the Tories is usually

Last edited Sat Oct 3, 2015, 03:53 PM - Edit history (1)

sufficient to get my vote. 11 years of Thatcher had that effect, even before this present government.

I have to admit that, without enthusiasm, I gave my first preference to Yvette Cooper. Could some of the reason be related to my still having been a bit flipped-out over Ed Balls' defeat? - yes, probably; but in addition, I thought she had the best policies of a bad bunch: Liz Kendall is marginally better than a Tory; and Burnham a bit too obviously a flip-flopper and all-things-to-all-people. Cooper is at least good on the refugee issue.

Corbyn (to whom I gave my second preference) is the best IMO on economic issues, but even by my standards a bit naïve on foreign policy and some of his choices of associates haven't been great (though Tories have no right to comment as long as they associate with True Finns and dodgy right-wing Poles in the Euro-Parliament). But Corbyn has impressed me much more favourably since he became leader of the party, than he did earlier; and I realize that my fantasyland alternatives of Nicola Sturgeon-switching-parties, Bernie Sanders-moving-here, or even Watson or Creasy standing for the leadership, are pipe-dreams.

I hope Corbyn can turn things round for Labour. I can say that my mother, who is more left-wing than I am, is quite enthusiastic about him; and that my slightly politically nutty office-mate, who voted for a small Christian-Right party in 2010, and spoilt her ballot paper in 2015, has said that she may vote Labour for the first time in her life.

[The King of Prussia]

8. The "moderate left"

The moderate left are the ones who don't start illegal imperialist wars. The moderate left are the ones that do oppose Tory welfare cuts. There is nothing moderate about Blair, Clegg etc.

[LeftishBrit]

9. I would certainly never call Blair or Clegg 'moderate left' or anything 'left'

Denis Healey might have been described as 'moderate left'.